The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, says recent policy delivery actions by the apex bank are strengthening stability and improving efficiency in Nigeria’s foreign exchange market.
The CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso said that the CBN had eliminated the system of multiple exchange rates, a practice that had previously benefitted only a privileged few.
Cardoso said the bank has also reduced the parallel market premium from about 50 percent in 2022 to less than two percent on average in 2025.
Speaking at the alumni lecture of St. Gregory’s College, Cardoso noted that liquidity in the foreign exchange market has improved, while capital and investment inflows into Nigeria rose by nearly 200 percent between 2023 and 2025.
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He said that Nigeria’s external reserves recently exceeded 50 billion dollars, reflecting growing investor confidence in the economy.
The CBN boss said; “This progress reflects not only the resilience of Nigeria’s financial system, but also the growing confidence of investors in the long-term potential of our economy. By strengthening the capital foundations of our banks and ensuring that our financial markets are transparent and well governed, we are also strengthening the foundations of economic growth itself.”
The apex bank Governor said that the renewed shocks in the global economy, including continued geopolitical tensions and the latest developments in the US–Israel–Iran conflict, are likely to push energy prices higher, disrupt supply chains, and increase risk aversion among global investors.
He however assured Nigerians that the macroeconomic reforms and policy buffers built by the CBN over the past two years have placed Nigeria in a far stronger position to navigate these challenges.
Cardoso also highlighted the rapidly evolving future of finance as well as the transformative contributions of technology in the financial landscape, as it reshapes how individuals access services, how businesses transact, and how economies grow.
This, he said, was the reason why the CBN is taking the fintech ecosystem seriously, by establishing clear measures that stand not as obstacles but the infrastructure that ensures that innovation can scale sustainably ensuring that these regulatory frameworks protect the integrity and credibility of the broader financial ecosystem.
He said; “Nigeria today hosts one of the world’s most dynamic fintech ecosystems. Digital payments, mobile banking, financial technology platforms, and digital identity solutions are expanding financial inclusion to millions of previously underserved Nigerians. Young entrepreneurs are building businesses that simply did not exist a decade ago. Technology is enabling faster, safer payments, more efficient lending, and broader access to investment opportunities.”
The CBN then, as a reminder on the true purpose of education, said that despite already established successes recorded and the projections, the strength of the nation’s financial system ultimately depends on the strength of its human capital.
He said; “The bankers, regulators, entrepreneurs, and policymakers who shape it are products of institutions like St. Gregory’s College. Discipline, integrity, and responsibility are instilled long before graduates enter the workforce, and these values underpin the credibility and resilience of our institutions.”
The CBN Governor stressed that the most important foundations a nation can build are not physical structures, but human ones, noting that the classrooms of today will shape the financial systems of tomorrow.
Speaking to the students present, Cardoso said that “their success will increasingly depend on their ability to understand and work across multiple disciplines, stressing that skills in areas such as artificial intelligence, coding, data science, digital media, and emerging technologies will probably not replace traditional careers but will certainly enhance them.”