ABUJA, Nigeria — The Naira maintained relative stability against the United States Dollar on Thursday, June 18, 2026, with the official exchange rate closing at ₦1,360.07 per dollar, according to figures released by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The latest rate represented a slight depreciation from ₦1,357.18 recorded on Wednesday, June 17, 2026, reflecting marginal movements in the official foreign exchange market. However, the parallel market witnessed the dollar trading at approximately ₦1,390, highlighting the persistent gap between official and black-market rates.
The exchange rate comes amid ongoing reforms by the Central Bank, including the unification of foreign exchange windows under the Investors and Exporters (I&E) platform and the implementation of a willing buyer, willing seller model aimed at improving transparency and efficiency in the market.
Under the unified framework introduced in June 2023, the CBN collapsed all foreign exchange windows into the I&E window, abolished segmentation, and reintroduced order-based two-way quotes with a bid-ask spread of N1. The operational rate for government-related transactions is now determined by the weighted average rate of the previous day’s executed transactions at the I&E window.
The Central Bank has also reintroduced the Order Book to ensure transparency of orders and seamless execution of trades, with operational hours set from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Nigeria time. Proscription of trading limits on oversold FX positions with permission to hedge short positions with over-the-counter futures has been implemented, while limits on overbought positions have been reduced to zero.
Despite these measures, the persistent gap between the official and parallel market rates indicates ongoing challenges in the foreign exchange market. Analysts continue to monitor developments as policymakers seek to strengthen the Naira, attract investment, and improve liquidity within Nigeria’s foreign exchange system.
The CBN has maintained that applications for medicals, school fees, Business Travel Allowance (BTA), Personal Travel Allowance (PTA), and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) would continue to be processed through deposit money banks. However, the operational changes imply that Nigeria has eased its control of the naira, allowing the local currency to float freely in a market-driven environment.
A free-floating exchange rate occurs when a government allows the exchange rate to be determined purely by market forces, and there is no attempt to ask the central bank to influence the external value of the exchange rate. The CBN has stated that further guidance on operational changes would be communicated to authorised dealers and the general public in due course.
As the forex market continues to evolve, the gap between official and parallel market rates remains a key indicator of market sentiment and the effectiveness of ongoing reforms. For now, the Naira holds steady, but the black market rate of ₦1,390 underscores the challenges that lie ahead in achieving full convergence and stability.
