The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has given international money transfer operators (IMTOs) a May 1 ultimatum to begin routing transactions through designated naira settlement accounts in banks.
The move is expected to tighten oversight of diaspora inflows, improve transparency and deepen liquidity in the official foreign exchange market.
A circular to all IMTOs, authorised dealer banks and the general public titled, “Measures to Further Enhance Compliance in the Remittance Space,” and signed by the director, trade and exchange department, Musa Nakorji, directed IMTOs to ensure that all remittance transactions, including beneficiary payments and related settlements, are processed strictly through accounts maintained with authorised dealer banks in the country.
Under the new rules, IMTOs are required to either designate existing accounts or open new naira settlement accounts but have the flexibility to operate multiple accounts across different authorised dealer banks in line with their business strategies.
The CBN said all remittance inflows and proceeds from foreign exchange conversions must be credited exclusively into these accounts.
The Central Bank said the measure is aimed at strengthening transparency, traceability and monitoring of diaspora remittances, a critical source of foreign exchange for Africa’s largest economy.
The CBN further directed IMTOs to reference real-time rates from Bloomberg BMatch when pricing transactions.
