The naira continued its downward spiral on the parallel market on Thursday, selling for 543 to the dollar.

While Bureau de Change operators in Abuja bought dollar at N540, it was sold for N543.

The PUNCH had reported on Thursday that the naira fell to 535/$1 on Wednesday from 532/$1 on Tuesday.

The British pound sterling was sold for N740 on Thursday, compared to N730 on Wednesday.

The development comes 44 days after the Central Bank of Nigeria stopped the sale of foreign exchange to all BDC operators across the country.

On June 27, the CBN ended the sales of forex to BDCs, saying the parallel market had become a conduit for illicit forex flows and graft.

The CBN said it would also no longer process applications for BDC licences in the country.

Weekly sales of forex by the CBN would henceforth go directly to commercial banks, the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, said.

The Committee of Banks Chief Executive Officer, headed by the CEO of Access Bank, Herbert Wigwe, said on July 29 that the exchange rate would drop to around N423 to the dollar on the parallel market.

On August 9, 2021, the Managing Director of Financial Derivatives Company Limited, Mr Bismarck Rewane, said the naira would rise in the parallel market towards 490-495 against the dollar in August/September.

The PUNCH, however, reports that since the CBN’s latest forex policy began in late June, the highest the naira has reached on the parallel market is 504/$1.