The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recently ran a Retail Dutch Auction System (rDAS) on August 6, 2024. They did this to help control the high demand for foreign currency and to understand its true value.
During this auction, CBN sold $876.26 million to 26 banks at a rate of N1,495 per dollar.
This auction happened because people in Nigeria, including businesses, wanted more foreign currency than was available. This demand made the FX market very tense.
At first, 32 banks wanted to participate, offering $1.18 billion. But six banks did not follow the rules and were disqualified, leaving 26 banks to share the $876.26 million. These banks got about 75% of what they asked for. The money was set to be given to them on August 8, 2024.
This auction is one of the biggest steps taken by Governor Yemi Cardoso of the CBN to make the Nigerian currency, the naira, more stable.
Here are the top 10 banks that got the most foreign currency during this auction:
Union Bank
Union Bank is one of Nigeria’s oldest banks and faced some problems because CBN dissolved its board for not following some rules. Despite this, they managed to get $13.27 million in the auction, with bids ranging from N1,500.00 to N1,600.00 per dollar.
Sterling Bank
Sterling Bank is known for digital banking and green financing. They aimed for financial inclusion and secured $14.4 million in FX with bids from N1,500.00 to N1,595.00 per dollar.
Jaiz Bank
Jaiz Bank, the first non-interest bank in Nigeria, got $16.71 million from CBN. They focused on ethical banking with bid ranges between N1,520.00 and N1,585.00 per dollar.
TAJ Bank
TAJ Bank, another non-interest bank, secured $19.11 million in FX from CBN. Their bid range was N1,500.00 to N1,570.00 per dollar.
Standard Chartered (Stanchart)
Standard Chartered Bank, a global bank, secured $28.43 million in FX. Their bids ranged from N1,500.00 to N1,650.00 per dollar.
GTBank (GTB)
GTBank is known for its strong digital banking. They secured $29.54 million in FX. Their bids ranged between N1,500.00 and N1,620.00 per dollar.
Fidelity Bank
Fidelity Bank focuses on small businesses and retail. They secured $43.62 million in FX with bid ranges from N1,495.00 to N1,595.00 per dollar.
Access Bank
Access Bank, the largest in Nigeria, secured $79.09 million in FX. Their bids ranged from N1,500.00 to N1,635.00 per dollar.
First Bank of Nigeria (FBN)
First Bank of Nigeria, the oldest bank, secured $228.99 million in FX. Their bids ranged from N1,500.00 to N1,600.00 per dollar.
Zenith Bank
Zenith Bank secured the highest FX at $267.86 million. Their bids ranged from N1,500.00 to N1,650.00 per dollar.