CBN Revokes 20 BDC Licenses

Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has revoked the licences of 20 Bureaux de Change (BDC) companies for foreign exchange malpractice, according to Malam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, governor of the bank.

Sanusi, who spoke at Ikoyi Club 75th Anniversary Lecture in Lagos on Thursday however declined to mention names of the affected BDCs.

He however said that the promoters would be charged with money laundering.

He said that affected BDCs operators bought dollars from commercial banks without accounting for what the dollars were needed for nor purchasers of the money.

The CBN governor said that the apex bank’s investigation showed that commercial banks were importing billions of US dollars in the country for onward sale to the affected BDCs. “This week, I have revoked licence of 20 BDCs and they will be prosecuted for money laundering with the banks,” Sanusi said.

He said that Nigeria had taken over from Russia as the highest importer of U.S. dollars which led to the fall of the nation’s local currency at the foreign exchange market.

Sanusi said that the country was importing more U.S. dollars in cash than any other country in the world.