CBN Tightens Rules On Forex And Imports

CBN Tightens Rules On Forex And Imports

The Central Bank of Nigeria , CBN, has tightened its rules on accessing foreign exchange by importers, following recent massive importation of military hardware through the nation's ports.

CBN has mandated that from next year, banks must be sure of products being imported into the country by their customers before foreign exchange is made available to them.

Apart from the nature of the goods being imported, other areas the banks are expected to scrutinise before making Forex available to importers are the history of both the importers and their overseas suppliers.

The CBN's move was geared towards complementing the Nigerian government's new resolve to checkmate the recent influx of unwanted goods, especially arms.

The Central Bank has also instructed the banks that customers' underlying transactions and supporting documents must be validated by the banks before Forex are sold to the importers.

Meanwhile, the CBN has reduced the advance payments by an importer to a supplier of goods prior to shipment, Cost and Freight (C&F) to 15 per cent of Freight on Board (FOB), from the previous 20 per cent.

Newspaper/Margaret/Yinka