CBN denies allocating $1.25bn for fuel import

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has refuted the report that it allocated $1.259 billion foreign exchange for the importation of petroleum products in the first quarter of the year.

It said in a statement on Tuesday that the report was misleading and inaccurate.

“The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has noted some misreporting that falsely implies the Bank disbursed US$1.259 billion to major oil sector operators for the importation of refined petroleum products and related items. Such reporting is entirely inaccurate and misleading,” the statement said.

The bank noted that the referenced figure of US$1.259 billion, as published in the CBN’s Q1 2025 Sectoral Utilisation of Foreign Exchange data, did not represent CBN disbursements.

It said the figure was the total foreign exchange transactions conducted by participants in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM) across various sectors — including oil and gas — under the willing buyer, willing seller framework.

According to the bank’s spokesperson, Mrs. Hakama Sidi Ali, “Since the unification of exchange rates in 2023, the NFEM has operated as a market-driven system, where foreign exchange is sourced and supplied by market participants, not allocated by the CBN. Accordingly, the Bank has not sold foreign exchange specifically for the importation of refined petroleum nor any other products.”

She explained that the data cited in the report merely captures aggregate utilisation by authorised dealers and end-users who independently sourced foreign exchange through the market, in full compliance with existing regulations.

Ali stressed that those were legitimate market transactions, not instances of direct CBN intervention in the oil sector.
The spokesperson said the CBN remained committed to a transparent, market-based foreign exchange regime that promotes efficient price discovery, supports economic stability, and ensures confidence in Nigeria’s financial system.