Bankers Committee raises concerns on how Forex buyers, firms frustrate CBN policy

The Bankers Committee has raised concern on how some forex buyers, firms are frustrating the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) policy. According to the banks’ chief executive officers that had a virtual briefing with the financial journalists, “Some Foreign Exchange (Fx) users are presenting fake documents to buy dollars in bank”.

Besides, the Committee said some bank customers have been requesting forex in excess of what they require. It said those engaging in such acts do so to circumvent the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)’s new policy that forex will only be sold to users through the banks. However, it would be recalled that the CBN, on July 27 stopped dollar sales to Bureau de Change operators and authorised commercial banks to ensure that only genuine customers have access to forex.

Addressing the financial journalist, Mr. Segun Agbaje, who is the chief executive officer of Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc, said there have been incidents of customers presenting fake documents.

After the Committee meeting, Agbaje cited expired passports, invalid flight tickets or open tickets that they cancel after accessing forex as documents being presented by customers. Agbaje warned that banks do not want “fraudulent transactions taking place” in the guise of forex transaction.

He said : “ Forex policy implementation is working very well. We are working with the Nigeria interbank Settlement System (NIBSS) to digitize forex buy.

“Today there is already a NIBSS policy where banks share details of international passport, Bank Verification Number (BVN) of people trying to defraud the system. The fraudulent transactions will be reported to the CBN”.

He said banks have witnessed disturbing activities by customers demanding for forex. Specifically, he mentioned the submission of questionable flight tickets and the request for more forex than the customers may need.

On how the forex market has fared since the ban, Agbaje said legitimate demands for Business Travel Allowance (BTA) and Personal Travel Allowance (PTA), medical needs and educational purposes “are working very well”. Urging customers to consider putting their forex in cards, Agbaje said the Banker’s Committee plans to digitize the process.

The banks and their staff, he assured, would be held accountable if forex infractions are traced to them, adding that the CBN would hold the banks responsible to prevent fraudulent activities in forex transactions.

Citi Bank Managing Director Mrs. Iretiogo Samuel-Ogbu, said: “There will be sanctions where people abuse the system. We want forex allocated to legitimate users because we have noticed that some customers are using fake documents.”

Her First City Monument Bank (FCMB) counterpart Mrs. Yemisi Edun, said banks are “ready and prepared” to support the initiative and all banks are attending to their customers. She said: “Banks have established portals in an attempt to check the activities of unscrupulous customers who want to take advantage of the forex ban.

“We do not want people to gain the system, there are ways and means of tracking this. We have noticed behaviours where customers submit flight tickets then cancel after they get forex. We have ways of tracking this.

“Instead of carrying cash we want to encourage customers to use their banks when they want to buy the invisibles. CBN is ready to attend to the demands and we will report fraudsters to the law enforcement agencies.”