Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves have risen above $55 billion, the highest level in more than 18 years, Olayemi Cardoso, governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), has said.
Cardoso disclosed this on Tuesday at a press briefing after the 307th meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) in Abuja.
The CBN governor attributed the increase in the reserves to consistency and discipline in the management of the country’s external position.
He also cited contributions from Nigerians in the diaspora as another factor supporting the increase.
“We have been able to rebuild our reserves. We know that today, the reserves have crossed US$55 billion, the highest number in over 18 years,” Cardoso said.
“That’s a big thing. It’s come through consistency and discipline in approach. In addition to that is the whole issue of diaspora contributions.”
The latest figure is higher than the $54.08 billion recorded as of September 3, 2026.
The reserves have also surpassed the CBN’s projected level of about $51.04 billion for the full year.
CBN Highlights FX Market Reforms
Cardoso also highlighted reforms in the foreign exchange market, saying the CBN had reduced the gap between different exchange rates that existed under the previous system.
He said the former system created multiple exchange rates, with access to foreign exchange determining the rate available to market participants.
“We had a very dysfunctional foreign exchange market whereby there were multiplicity of rates depending on whom you knew and the access you had will determine the rate you will get,” he said.
According to Cardoso, the reforms have helped close the gap between the different rates.
“What has happened is that we have succeeded in closing that gap. It is not fair for some people to profit at the expense of others,” he said.
The governor also said losses associated with the previous foreign exchange subsidy regime were about 2.2 per cent of gross domestic product.
“The losses of these ‘subsidies’ were in the region of 2.2% of the GDP. And that is staggering,” he said.
CBN Cuts MPR To 23%
The reserve announcement came as the MPC reduced the monetary policy rate (MPR) by 350 basis points to 23 per cent from 26.5 per cent.
The committee also recalibrated the asymmetric corridor around the MPR to +50/-300 basis points.
Cardoso said the adjustment was an operational reset designed to improve monetary policy transmission and support the transition to an inflation-targeting framework.
“The MPC emphasised that the recalibration of the corridor does not constitute a change in the current monetary policy stance, but rather an operational reset to enhance the effectiveness of monetary policy and support the transition to an inflation targeting framework,” he said.
The committee retained the cash reserve requirement (CRR) at 45 per cent for deposit money banks and 16 per cent for merchant banks.
It also retained the 75 per cent CRR on non-Treasury Single Account (TSA) public sector deposits.
Cardoso said the measures were intended to strengthen monetary policy transmission and restore the MPR as the principal signal of monetary policy.
The increase in reserves comes amid ongoing CBN reforms in the foreign exchange market and changes to the monetary policy framework.