BDC operators detained as naira sells 1,416/$

Some Bureau De Change operators were reportedly arrested on Tuesday by agents of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission at the well-known Wuse Zone 4 market.

In addition, traders reported that during a sting operation, some BDC operators resisted being arrested.

In order to rid the market of arbitrary trading and sanitize it of street vendors, the operatives had started conducting routine raids.

However, on Tuesday, the operation faced resistance, which resulted in gunfire and damage to their cars, as confirmed by two currency merchants who saw the events and spoke with The PUNCH.

One of the traders, who wished to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals, claimed that the traders had only acted to extract money from them and were frustrated by how frequently they were being arrested.

He said, “EFCC guys came to raid and make an arrest on Monday and they came today (Tuesday) but today’s operation was too strong.

“This is the issue we are facing. Yesterday (Monday) they arrested traders but they were attacked back today and gunshots were fired because our people tried to resist the arrest. They were provoked and frustrated. They even broke the glasses of the EFCC vehicles today and that means people are getting tired and desperate.”

An further trader who attested to the incident cautioned that more raids by the anti-corruption organization could result in fatalities.

The trader who also pleaded anonymity said, “If this thing continues like this, that means they would kill people because if they try to arrest next time, nobody would agree and another person would gather together so that nobody would be taken.

“That was happened today. People are now turning because all they do after arrest is to collect money from us. Nothing else is done. They are frustrating use.’

With the goal of stabilizing the naira, the EFCC has started raiding again.

For alleged foreign exchange fraud, the commission detained around 35 suspected currency speculators in the penultimate week.

It also paraded more than 20 BDC operators who had been detained in the capital city last week.

The naira has continued to decrease in value in spite of these attempts.

According to the rates, the operators made a profit margin of N25 since they bought the dollar at N1,400 and sold it for N1,425 each.

A N5 decrease from the N1,430 it sold on Monday was also highlighted.

Malam Yahu, a trader, expressed dissatisfaction with the market’s volatility and added that it was now challenging to predict the rates at which they would trade.

He said, “Right now the market is just fluctuating, the naira is not stable at all and that’s why we are even sceptical about buying now. We can’t even predict how the market will trade.

“For instance, after today’s arrest, I didn’t buy or make sales to avoid a loss. I bought it earlier today at N1,400 and sold it at N1,425.

“We have also noticed that once the prices go up, there will be scarcity because they would expect the naira to drop further but if it’s at a loss, they would then rush to sell it off.”

The currency declined to N1,416/$ at the official market from N1,354/$ recorded in the foreign exchange market on Monday, according to data gathered from the FMDQ exchange securities.

There were worries about sharp swings as the naira fell 4.4%, or N62, according to the current exchange rate.

Tuesday’s intraday high was N1,441/$1, up from N1,441/$1 on Monday. In addition, the intraday low dropped from N1,285/$1 on Monday to N1,301/$1.

However, the amount of money offered by willing vendors and buyers rose to $160.77 million from $84.3 million on Monday.

On February 19, 2024, the previous rate reached its lowest point in around 10 weeks, with a daily turnover of $66.4 million.