The Federal Government has called on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to cut down the number of Bureau de Change (BDC) in the country from over 5,000 to about 200.
Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Economic Affairs, Tope Fasua, stated this at an economic policy event organised by the Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
According to him, the high number of BDCs in operation makes it difficult for the CBN to supervise them, which eventually leads to irregularities in the forex market.
“We need to do some structural reforms. For example, I believe we should reform the BDCs’ sector, and make them stronger.
“You can’t manage over 5,000 BDCs selling money on the streets, it is not normal. You have to define the illegal market and by then, we will be able to find stability.
“We cannot manage 5,000 BDCs, maybe we should be looking at 100 or 200. In the United Kingdom as a tourism destination, they have 145 BDCs the last time I checked. In the UAE they have 130.
“So what are we doing with 5,000 BDCs? You will never be able to supervise them. How many staff would you need to look at their returns and check them?” Fasua stated.
The presidential adviser also advocated that more structures be put in place to enable the BDCs and banks provide easy access to forex by Nigerians.
“If we can do the structural reforms in the BDCs sector and the banks and supervise them well, the CBN with the reserves that we have can incentivise that sector, allowing people to get the money much quicker,” he added.
