BDC DOLLAR DEMAND CRASHES OVER ENFORCEMENT OF BVN

enforcement of the BVN rule, the number had fallen to 700 on Monday.

He described the BVN rule as essentially a Bankers’ Committee initiative to enhance the know-yourcustomer (KYC) requirement of the commercial banks and financial institutions, stressing that it is meant for all financial transactions in the country.

“It is important to understand that the BDCs are not being singled out here in the implementation of the BVN initiative. It is meant for all financial transactions and the BDCs are no exception.

“It helps us to track all financial activities and transactions happening in the economic space and since the BDCs are part of the Nigerian foreign exchange market they should also be accommodated within the BVN enforcement,” the governor said.

Emefiele noted that people had in the past raised the alarm that BDCs, rather than sell forex to retail buyers, had been involved in selling dollars to people who need more than the $5,000 limit set for retail buyers of forex.

“So by insisting on BVN as a perquisite for forex transactions, it makes us know exactly those who are buying on a retail basis and exposes those who are violating the rules,” he said.

The CBN governor said the claim that people may not be willing to disclose their travel details and their BVN in compliance with the rules for eligibility for retail forex was not correct, stressing that Travelex, one of the BDCs in the country, has been selling dollars for years to retail buyers and customers have been freely disclosing their BVN and other details.

Confirming the statement of the CBN boss, General Manager of Travelex, Nigeria, Mr. Anthony Enwereji, said since the introduction of the policy, his company had been able to work freely with customers who have freely presented all the required information for accessing retail forex.

Enwereji stressed that being a company that operates in about 29 countries in the world, they adhere strictly to rules and regulations of countries where they operate and Nigeria is no exception.

According to him, Travelex sells retail forex at the official CBN rate of N196.98 per dollar, in addition to their 3.5 per cent commission, which places the value at approximately N203.89 per dollar, compared to over N220 per dollar in the parallel market.