EFCC parleys BDC operators, warns against forex hoarding

As part of efforts to address the rising incidence of foreign exchange speculation which has brought pressure on the value of the naira, the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa, on Friday, met with representatives of the Bureau de Change operators in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

According to a statement issued on Friday by the EFCC spokesman, Wilson Uwujaren, Bawa said he called the meeting to fashion out a collaborative stakeholders’ response to brazen foreign exchange speculation, especially at the parallel market which has been hurting the country’s monetary policy by instigating a run on the value of the naira.

He added that similar meetings were planned for other Bureau de Change operators in the major commercial cities across Nigeria as well as with key players, regulators, and operators of the country’s financial sector.

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Bawa, who also disclosed that the commission has intelligence linking some persons and organisations to the hoarding of foreign currencies, especially the United States dollar in Kano, Lagos, Port Harcourt, Enugu, and Calabar, however, warned those involved to desist or risk arrest as “a major offensive against the speculators is under way”.

The operators, who thanked the EFCC for the invitation, expressed optimism that the naira’s rebound, which began after the anti-graft agency’s intervention a few days ago, may eventually see the currency return to its pre-speculation value.

The Star