CBN to sanction exporters for not repatriating forex

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), together with the Bankers’ Committee, said it would impose sanctions on exporters who refused to repatriate forex proceeds from their international business.

The regulator has therefore directed all banks in Nigeria to hand in the names, addresses and Bank Verification Numbers of defaulting exporters for further action.

In a statement released on Tuesday and titled ‘CBN Goes Tough on Exporters over Forex Non-Repatriation, the apex bank noted that the move was among the efforts taken to improve foreign exchange liquidity in the country.

The directive, which was issued by the CBN chief, Godwin Emefiele, at the bi-monthly virtual session of the Bankers’ Committee, came barely 24 hours after the abolition of third party Form M payment.

It also came on the heels of the adoption of a blueprint to discourage over-invoicing, which had been allegedly used by some businesses to divert foreign exchange from Nigeria through the opening of Form M for which payments were routed through a buying company, agent or other third parties.

The statement, which was signed by CBN’s Director of Trade and Exchange, Ozoemena Nnaji, observed that the order was intended to ensure prudent utilisation of the country’s foreign exchange resources and the eradication of incidences of over-invoicing, double handling charges, transfer pricing and avoidable costs that are ultimately passed to the average Nigerian consumer.

It said that the CBN, in the past, had equally warned exporters against diverting forex from export proceeds instead of sending them home.

Analysts, according to the statement, said a number of punitive measures were available for the CBN including, but not limited to, prohibiting exporters from the foreign exchange market and other banking services.