The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced that individuals selling foreign exchange to Bureau De Change (BDC) operators in amounts equivalent to $10,000 or more must disclose the sources of their foreign exchange.
The central bank made this declaration within a revised regulatory framework aimed at restraining the excesses of Bureau De Change (BDC) operators and mitigating uncertainty in the foreign exchange market. This framework was published on Friday.
According to the CBN, individuals selling foreign exchange in amounts equivalent to $10,000 or more must also adhere to all Anti-Money Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) regulations, as well as foreign exchange laws and regulations.
The CBN emphasized that these guidelines would significantly strengthen the regulatory structure governing BDC operations as part of the ongoing reforms in the Nigerian foreign exchange market.
Furthermore, the central bank outlined that the guidelines revise permissible activities, licensing requirements, corporate governance standards, and AML/CFT provisions for BDCs.
The guidelines specifically stipulate that BDCs may acquire foreign currencies from tourists, individuals returning from the diaspora, expatriates receiving foreign exchange inflows from work, travel, investment, or their domiciliary accounts, residents with foreign exchange inflows from work, travel, investment, or their domiciliary accounts, and International Money Transfer Operators (IMTOs).
Additionally, authorized buyers of foreign currencies include embassies, hotels, the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM), and any other sources designated by the CBN.
Moreover, the guidelines outline that customers are permitted to transfer foreign currencies from their personal domiciliary accounts held with Nigerian banks to BDCs.
It further stated that “All digital/transfer purchases of foreign currencies shall be credited to the BDC’s Nigerian domiciliary account.
“Payments for all digital/transfer purchases of foreign currency by a BDC shall be by transfer to the customer’s Naira account. If the customer is non-resident (whether Nigerian or not), a BDC may issue the customer a prepaid NGN card.
“Where such a card is issued, relevant maximum credit and cumulative limits, in line with relevant Know Your Customer requirements, shall apply.
“Payments to customers for cash purchases of foreign currency, the equivalent of above USD500, shall be by transfer to the customer’s Naira bank account.
“If the customer is nonresident (whether Nigerian or not), a BDC shall issue the customer a prepaid NGN card.
“Where such a card is issued, relevant maximum credit and cumulative limits, in line with relevant Know Your Customer requirements, shall apply.
“Payments to customers for cash purchases of foreign currency of the equivalent of USD500 and below may be made in cash.”