The local currency gained N2 on the US dollar at the Peer-2-Peer (P2P) foreign exchange (FX) window, closing at N760/$1 on Friday, February 3, compared to the previous day’s N762/$1, indicating some relief as tensions rose across the country as a result of a cash crunch that has triggered anger and aggression in some states.
On Friday, President Muhammadu Buhari intervened, pleading with Nigerians to give him seven days to resolve the crisis caused by the scarcity of new Naira notes.
The President stated that he had heard about cash shortages and their impact on local businesses and ordinary citizens.
The Naira gained 50 Kobo, or 0.11 percent, against the US Dollar in the Investors and Exporters (I&E) segment, trading at N461.50/$1 versus N462.00/$1 the previous day.
The value of forex transactions during the official market increased by 3.54 percent, or $4.08 million, to $119.43 million on the day, up from $115.35 million the day before.
In the black market, however, the Nigerian currency fell by N1 against the US dollar to close at N753/$1, down from N752/$1 on Thursday.
On Friday, the domestic currency closed flat against the British Pound Sterling and the Euro in the interbank window, at N568.32/£1 and N507.14/€1, respectively.
The cryptocurrency market saw a mixed bag of results as the US Federal Reserve’s decision to raise interest rates by 25 basis points sent jittery signals.
Binance Coin (BNB) increased by 2.8 percent to $329.32, Dogecoin (DOGE) increased by 2.4 percent to $0.0935, Solana (SOL) increased by 1.1% to $24.49, Ethereum (ETH) increased by 0.9% to $1,654.18, Cardano (ADA) increased by 0.6% to $0.4006, and Litecoin (LTC) increased by 0.4% to $99.15.
However, Bitcoin (BTC) fell 0.7% to $23,356.32, and Ripple (XRP) fell 0.2% to $0.4092, while Binance USD (BUSD) and the US Dollar Tether (USDT) both closed flat at $1.00.
