The naira has suffered further depreciation at the parallel market, currently trading for N750 against the dollar, according to black market platform Aboki Forex.

The current parallel market exchange rate was monitored by Peoples Gazette Thursday night.

The Gazette had reported in September that the naira hit a record high, trading at N719 against the dollar. Since then, the dollar has continued to rise, exchanging at a higher rate.

In 2021, the apex bank prohibited the sale of foreign exchange to BDC operators in a bid to arrest the fast fall of the country’s currency. The apex bank had accused the BDCs of unauthorised sales of foreign exchange above the market they were authorised to serve.

BDC operators were a significant part of the black market before the ban, helping people who couldn’t legally access foreign currencies directly from the CBN to maintain their exchange rates.

The Gazette reported that the inability of BDC operators to obtain foreign currency from the CBN could have a significant negative effect on the economy of the nation by increasing pressure on the local currency.

The currency exchange rate was approximately N501 to a dollar when CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele forbade the sale of foreign exchange to BDC. The value of the naira, however, fell to N670 per dollar a year after the ban.

The apex bank threatened to detain and prosecute Nigerians who used naira to buy dollars in an effort to further restrict the flow of foreign exchange at the black market.

Godwin Emefiele, the head of the central bank has drawn criticism for failing to implement measures that would have helped stabilise the value of the nation’s currency on the foreign exchange market.