CBN moves to ease payment barriers between Nigeria, China
The Central Bank of Nigeria has begun engaging businesses to address cross-border payment challenges and improve financial flows between Nigeria and China. Read More:…
Nigeria-China trade has grown substantially over the past decade, with China consistently ranking among Nigeria's top import sources for machinery, electronics, textiles and other manufactured goods. However, Nigerian importers and businesses have long grappled with difficulties accessing foreign exchange and settling payments to Chinese suppliers, often relying on costly intermediaries or informal channels due to naira volatility, dollar scarcity and limited direct settlement mechanisms between the two currencies.
The CBN's latest engagement with businesses on this front follows broader efforts by the apex bank to stabilise the foreign exchange market and diversify Nigeria's trade settlement options beyond the dollar, including past discussions around currency swap arrangements with China. Both Punch and Leadership frame the move as part of a push to deepen bilateral trade and investment ties, though neither report provides specifics yet on timelines, the businesses involved, or concrete mechanisms the CBN plans to introduce to resolve the payment bottlenecks.