The Naira is on a free fall following the decision by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to redesign the N200, N500 and N1000 notes.
Rush to exchange stashed Naira notes for Dollars has further worsened the fate of the domestic currency.
On Wednesday, November 2, 2022, the unofficial parallel market operators sold N900 to a dollar and N950 to a pound.
Operators at the Allen Avenue and Ogba axis said there is a glut of the local currency at the market as Nigerians move to dispose of their Naira in exchange for hard currencies to circumvent the CBN deadline of January 31, 2023, for the cessation of the circulation of notes.
The spike in the pursuit of dollars is largely caused by panic among Nigerians who do not want to be caught off guard by the apex bank’s deadline.
The certainty that the CBN is redesigning the Naira notes drives a frantic chase of the Dollar and other foreign currencies.
Nigerians now prefer to hoard dollars instead of the naira, says Emeka Okoroanyanwu, Business Editor of the Nigerian Xpress, as per reporting by Legit.
Okoroanyanwu stated that because of the rate at the local currency is crashing, Nigerians feel it is useless saving their monies in naira.
“I don’t see the Naira regaining any moment soon. The best it can do is N500 to dollar but Nigerians should brace for N1,000 by December.”
Also, most people believe that many who hoarded the naira have emptied their vaults at the black markets due to fear of being caught by anti-graft agencies if they lodged them in the banks.
