The CBN says it did not provide $1.259 billion for fuel importation in Q1.
It explains the figure reflects regular forex transactions by market participants only.
The Central Bank of Nigeria has dismissed a report claiming it provided $1.259 billion for fuel importation in the first quarter of the year.
In a statement on Tuesday, CBN described the publication as misleading, noting that the figure being circulated was wrongly interpreted.
According to the bank, the amount was taken from its Q1 2025 Sectoral Utilization of Foreign Exchange data, but it did not represent money released by the CBN.
The spokesperson of the bank, Hakama Sidi Ali, explained that the figure reflected total foreign exchange transactions carried out by different operators in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market under the willing buyer, willing seller arrangement.
She noted that since exchange rates were unified in 2023, the market has been operating on a supply and demand basis, where private participants source foreign exchange without direct allocation by the CBN.
“The Bank has not sold foreign exchange specifically for the importation of refined petroleum or any other products,” she said.
Ali added that the data only shows how authorized dealers and end users applied the foreign currency they sourced through the market in line with regulations.
She stressed that these were normal market activities and not CBN intervention in the oil sector.
