Business
CBN to pay N65 bonus for every $1 of repatriated non-oil export proceeds sold at official FX rate
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) says exporters will now enjoy a rebate of N65 for every dollar of non-oil export proceeds sold to third parties at the importers and exporters (I&E) window.
The apex bank said this in a circular released yesterday and signed by O.S. Nnaji, director of trade & exchange department.
The rebate is part of the benefits under the non-oil export proceeds repatriation rebate scheme — a major anchor of the CBN’s RT200 FX programme aimed at attracting $200 billion in foreign exchange earning from non-oil exports proceeds over the next three to five years.
The I&E FX window is the market trading segment for investors, exporters and end-users that allows for FX trades to be made at exchange rates determined based on prevailing market circumstances.
The CBN said the rebate scheme was specifically designed to incentivise exporters in the non-oil export sector to encourage repatriation and sale of export proceeds into the FX market.
“The scheme shall pay N65 for every US$1 repatriated and sold at the I & E Window to Authorised Dealers and Banks (ADBs) for other thirty party use,” the circular reads.
“And N35 for every US$1 repatriated and sold into I&E for own use on eligible transactions only. However, the spread should not be more than 10 kobo.
“Payment of the incentive shall be made on quarterly basis. The accounts of exporters that qualify for rebates shall be credited latest one week after the end of the quarter.”
The apex bank said only exporters of finished and semi-finished goods are eligible for the incentive.
“Exporters shall qualify for the rebates only, where repatriated export proceeds are sold at the Investors & Exporters Window (I&E),” the circular adds.
“Eligible transactions that qualify for incentives under the scheme shall be export of finished and semi-finished goods wholly or partly processed or manufactured in Nigeria, except otherwise stated by the CBN; and export of goods and services (IT and creative businesses) that are permissible and excluded under existing export prohibition list.”
To ensure the success of the scheme, the CBN said:” Banks are therefore expected to show full understanding about both the real and perceived objectives of this Circular as any attempts to circumvent the intent of the Scheme shall result in the suspension of the FOREX dealership licence of the ADB for 24months.”
Business
Naira depreciates to N1,700/$ at parallel market — lowest in seven months
The naira depreciated to N1,700 per dollar at the parallel section of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Friday.
At the end of trading hours, the naira depreciated by 1.49 percent compared to the N1,675/$ traded on Thursday.
The N1,700 per dollar is the lowest the naira has depreciated since February 19, when the naira recorded a low of N1,730/$.
Currency traders, also known as street traders, in Lagos, quoted the buying rate of the local currency at N1,680/$ and the selling rate at N1,700/$ — leaving a profit margin of N20.
Currency traders, also known as street traders, in Lagos, quoted the buying rate of the local currency at N1,680/$ and the selling rate at N1,700/$ — leaving a profit margin of N20.
WEEK-LONG FLUCTUATIONS
At the parallel market on Monday, the naira depreciated to N1,665/$ from N1,663 on September 20.
Maintaining the depreciation streak, the local currency fell further to N1,670 and N1,680 on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively.
However, the naira rebounded to N1,675 on Thursday.
At the official FX market, the local currency depreciated to N1,562.66 on Monday — from N1,541.52 on September 20.
Subsequently, the naira further depreciated to N1,658.48 on Tuesday and N1,667.72 on Wednesday, before appreciating to N1,576.1 on Thursday.
On January 29, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said it had begun implementing a comprehensive plan to improve liquidity in the Nigerian FX markets in the short, medium, and long term.
The apex bank said the FX reforms were designed to streamline and harmonise multiple exchange rates, promote transparency, and lessen the likelihood of arbitrage opportunities.
On September 25, Olayemi Cardoso, governor of CBN, said the multiple interest rate hikes have restored confidence in the naira.
Business
CBN extends suspension of processing fees on deposits to March 2025
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has extended the suspension of processing fees on cash deposits for six months.
The development comes six days before the suspension date initially fixed, expires.
On May 1, banks resumed the collection of processing fees on cash deposits.
Six days later, CBN suspended charges on the deposits until September 30.
However, in a circular directed to all banks, other financial institutions and non-financial institutions, dated September 24, 2024, and signed by Adetona Adedeji, CBN’s director of banking supervision, the apex bank extended the date to March 31, 2025.
“Further to our letter dated May 6, 2024, referenced BSD/DIR/PUB/LAB/016/023, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) hereby extends the suspension of processing charges on cash deposits above N500,000 for individuals and N3,000,000 for corporates,” the apex bank said.
“The previous suspension, set to expire on September 30, 2024, has now been extended until March 31, 2025.
“This suspension pertains to the 2% and 3% fees outlined in the ‘Guide to Charges by Banks, Other Financial Institutions and Non-Bank Financial Institutions, issued on December 20, 2019.”
CBN asked all financial institutions to continue accepting cash deposits from the public without any charges during the period.
Business
Meta unveils John Cena, others as new AI voice clones
Meta, the giant tech company, announced on Wednesday the integration of celebrity voices into its artificial intelligence chatbot, Meta AI, in an effort to compete with products like ChatGPT.
At the Meta Connect 2024 developer conference in Menlo Park, founder Mark Zuckerberg revealed that users of Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, and Facebook can now engage in real-time conversations using a variety of voices, including those of celebrities like Awkwafina, Dame Judi Dench, John Cena, Keegan-Michael Key, and Kristen Bell.
While this new voice feature aims to enhance user interaction, it differs from OpenAI’s Advanced Voice Mode for ChatGPT, which is celebrated for its expressive and emotive tones. In contrast, Meta’s offering resembles Google’s Gemini Live, which transcribes speech and reads responses aloud with synthetic voices.
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