The naira is close to exchanging at N500 per dollar after the Central Bank of Nigeria devalued the official rate of the currency.
The naira plunged to N495 per dollar at the parallel market on Thursday.
This is the highest rate the naira fell since July 2020 when it traded N490.
The apex bank officially devalued the naira to N410 per dollar bowing partially to months of pressure by the International Monetary Fund to allow the forces of demand and supply to determine the country’s foreign exchange market.
The rate is close to the Investors’ & Exporter (NAFEX) Windows where investors and exporters trade.
At the I&E Window, the naira gained 80 kobo to trade at N411 per dollar.
The bank had struggled with maintaining a single foreign exchange window.
The bank had devalued the naira from N305 per dollar to N360/ dollar and N379 per dollar.
In 2020, the CBN admitted the country had a foreign exchange backlog of over $2bn, according to the apex bank.
