The call for REVALUATION. “guide our youths the truth to know”….REVALUATION of the Naira is the solution to Nigeria current issues of high inflation growth rate, high cost of productivity, low local output, high cost of imports, economic inactivity, negative GDP growth rate, low purchasing power and the call to devalue the naira.

In Nigeria’s foreign exchange (FX) market quotation system we have two quotations against the USD-dollars. The “parallel” market; Bureau De Change (BDC) - instituted bank “agents” quotation rate USD/NGR 1:308 and the fixed CBN Exchange rate of USD/NG, 1: 198. The common man would ask how the exchange rates between the two markets are determined, justified, how it impacts Nigeria’s economy and how is there a 65% disparity between the CBN and the parallel market(BDC)-(Corruption; core cause of the status of our economy).

The BDC (parallel market) is instituted market platform to trade currencies with customers to make profit locally. Profits are made from a commission payment on transaction. Commission is generally charged as a percentage of the amount to be exchanged or a fixed fee or both, justified by the incurred processing cost of providing this trade service, which is usually 2-5% with other countries. In some situations there could be a spread bid because of high demand of dollars against a country’s currency or vice versa, commission here could be higher,5-10%. The BANKS are market makers of currency quotation in the parallel market (BDC). The commission is the profit for the BDCs agents, like any trader and not the nation. So it was not surprising this administration discovered lots of fraud in this sector there was a 50% increase in the numbers of BDC’s in the last four (4) years, 95% is allegedly owned by bankers (institutive economic agents). SAD!

Resultant impact of this abnormal, unjustifiable and criminal quotation of Banks and BDC’s on FX of Nigeria’s economy include; - because of the organized crime in the banking sector a high percentage of dollars used for economic activity in the country is gotten from the BDCs, resulting in the lower fixed exchange rate quotation of the CBN been almost cosmetic as it does not reflect on the economics of the economy. The parallel market quotation of 65% margin becoming the dominant exchange rate stimulating economic activity. The USD/NGR 1:308 been disguised as the official dollar rate of our country only because of corruption and not market pressures or economics, resulting in: high inflation on consumer goods-locally and imported, high cost of imported goods, thus high cost of production-(most equipments and raw materials for production are imported), orchestrated USD scarcity and criminal exchange rate quotations economix, (If economic agents at all levels across all borders of our financial institutions are profiting hugely from the scarcity and criminal exchange rate, I am left to believe it must be orchestrated).

The huge commission of 65% is criminal and is what is keeping our economy in this current state, FG financial policies control should address this; it could make itself the market quotation maker of both markets by stipulating the maximum percentage of profits on commission in both FX markets. It is not surprising to see well meaning Nigerians still calling for devaluation because from their own understanding these will end this criminal act and maybe bring economic stability.

To devalue the Naira now, YES it will end this criminality but the aforementioned negative resultant realities on our economy will now be super imposed resulting chiefly in hyperinflation that will lead us to an ECONOMIC DEPRESSION. Our Naira Value is nothing close to USD/NGR, 1:308. Market forces and economic pressures make a country devalue, not high commission exchange rate on the local TRADING of dollar!

Thus, REVALUATION NOT devaluation is the solution; Revaluation of the parallel market FX rate is the first solution to end of this economic crisis, which is criminal in nature, then gearing us towards economic growth and BOOM. In the spirit of General Muritala Ramat Mohamed the correctional action by the CBN is to put the appropriate policy in place, the banks immediately announcing the "revaluation" of the parallel market exchange rate to the margin of 5% or less with “Immediate Effect” in accordance to CBN new guidelines.