Total foreign exchange (FX) market turnover in Nigeria surged to $52.47 billion in the first half of 2025, representing an increase of 262.4 percent compared with $14.48 billion in the preceding half-year, reflecting improved market participation under the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching System (EFEMS), the apex bank said.
The CBN disclosed the data in its financial stability report for the first half of 2025, published on its website. FX activities recorded a significant boost, with sales rising to $4.74 billion from $3.18 billion in the second half of 2024, while FX purchases stood at $3.97 billion, resulting in net sales of $0.77 billion. The report noted that there were no new forward transactions during the review period.
Meanwhile, the naira experienced a slight depreciation of N1.38 on Thursday, with the dollar quoted at N1,422.07, compared with N1,420.69 on Wednesday at the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM), according to the CBN.
In the parallel market, popularly known as the black market, the naira closed at N1,487 per dollar on Thursday, up slightly from N1,490, where it had remained over the past two weeks.
Read also: Why naira will trade at N1,400–N1,500/$ band
Nigeria’s external reserves continued to grow, reaching $45.98 billion as of January 21, 2026. The naira also recorded an appreciation of 0.76 percent to N1,529.71 per dollar on June 30, 2025, from N1,541.36 per dollar on January 2, 2025, reversing the 1.73 percent depreciation recorded in the preceding half of 2024 (N1,509.69 → N1,535.82 per dollar). The CBN attributed the appreciation to improved FX liquidity and the adoption of the Nigerian FX Code, which promoted market-based price discovery, transparency, and ethical conduct, thereby strengthening investor confidence.
There were no new over-the-counter (OTC) FX futures contracts during the review period, as in the preceding half-year. However, matured contracts amounted to $86.49 million, compared with $78.70 million at end-December 2024, leading to a significant decline in outstanding FX futures contracts to $1.56 million from $88.05 million in the preceding half-year.
The Bilateral Currency Swap Agreement (BCSA) between the CBN and the People’s Bank of China (PBoC), valued at N720.00 billion/CNY15.00 billion and renewed in April 2024 for another three-year term, remained active in the first half of 2025. No new transactions were recorded under the agreement during the review period, leaving cumulative sales at CNY9.22 billion.
The CBN further conducted foreign exchange examinations of the 34 Authorised Dealers (ADs), comprising 29 commercial banks and five merchant banks, to assess compliance with extant foreign exchange rules and regulations, verify sources of FX flows, and evaluate the utilisation of foreign exchange acquired for eligible transactions.
