The Nigerian naira remained relatively stable against the United States dollar on Wednesday, August 19, 2026, with the currency trading at around the N1,350 per dollar level in the official Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM). However, a wider gap persisted in the parallel market.
The latest official figures available from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed that the naira closed at approximately N1,350 to the dollar at the NFEM on Monday, August 17, 2026. This represented an improvement from the N1,358.25 recorded on Friday, August 14.
The NFEM exchange rate is calculated using the volume-weighted average of transactions conducted within the formal foreign exchange market.
For Wednesday, a live USD/NGN rate source placed the indicative exchange rate at approximately N1,350.24 per dollar. However, this figure is separate from the official NFEM fixing and may fluctuate throughout the day.
In the parallel market, the dollar was reportedly being bought at around N1,405 and sold for approximately N1,415 as of Tuesday, August 18, based on available market-rate data.
At the N1,415 selling rate, anyone looking to purchase $1,000 through the parallel market would require approximately N1.415 million. Conversely, someone selling $1,000 could receive about N1.405 million at the N1,405 buying rate.
The parallel-market selling price of N1,415 represents a difference of about N65 compared with the latest official NFEM rate of N1,350. The gap highlights the continued disparity between Nigeria’s formal and informal foreign exchange markets.
The naira’s recent performance in the official market has been supported by relatively stronger dollar liquidity and improved foreign exchange supply.
Market participants are expected to continue monitoring factors such as foreign exchange inflows, demand for imports, crude oil earnings, investment flows, remittances and CBN policies, all of which could influence the naira’s direction.
However, parallel-market exchange rates can differ depending on the location, dealer and size of the transaction. Rates may also change throughout the day as market conditions shift.
The CBN does not recognise the parallel market as an official foreign exchange market and continues to advise members of the public seeking foreign exchange to transact through authorised channels.