September 2025 marked a defining month for Nigeria’s foreign exchange market as the Naira staged a sustained recovery, recording its most stable trading stretch of the year. After months of volatility, the local currency strengthened to ₦1,400 per U.S. dollar, up from around ₦1,500 — a rebound that Bureau De Change (BDC) operators and analysts have dubbed the “Naira Boom.”
According to Alhaji Aminu Gwadabe, President of the Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), the Naira’s resurgence reflects the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) policy tightening, enhanced liquidity management, and the growing adoption of fintech-driven FX transparency tools. These developments have curbed speculative demand for dollars, discouraged hoarding, and gradually phased out black-market dominance.
“The demand for dollars — both fictitious and speculative — has dropped sharply,” Gwadabe said. “Fintech platforms have made local transactions seamless without the need for domiciliary accounts.” He also credited the Non-Resident Bank Verification Number (NRBVN) framework and the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) for boosting compliance, tax accountability, and investor trust.
Industry experts point to three reinforcing dynamics behind September’s currency rebound:
- Higher oil output, now around 1.8 million barrels per day, improved foreign inflows and strengthened the external reserve position to $42.3 billion — the highest in over six years.
- Increased CBN dollar injections through banks and BDCs, coupled with diaspora remittances, added depth to market liquidity.
- Better fiscal coordination between the Ministry of Finance and the CBN, especially around the Treasury Single Account (TSA) and transparency reforms, improved investor perception and reduced speculative trading.
Economist Dr. Eugene Eke of the University of Abuja noted that “the alignment between fiscal and monetary policy actions” helped stabilize expectations and restored confidence in Nigeria’s macroeconomic outlook.
Analysts project that if policy discipline, fintech oversight, and oil revenue gains persist, the Naira could maintain its stability through Q4 2025. The CBN’s marginal rate cut to 27% and the narrowed asymmetric corridor also signal a more calibrated approach to inflation and liquidity control.
As Gwadabe put it, “October will be the real test. If these reforms hold, the Naira’s resurgence won’t just be a one-month miracle — it could mark the beginning of a sustainable trend.”
