The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed all Bureau de Change (BDC) operators in the nation to reapply for updated operational licenses before June 3, 2024, to retain their access to the forex market.
Under the new rules, tier 1 operators must meet a capital threshold of N2 billion, while tier 2 operators must have N500 million. The revised Regulatory and Supervisory Guidelines for Bureau de Change (BDC) Operations in Nigeria, which outlined the fresh minimum capital standards, were introduced in February.
A circular released on Wednesday, signed by Haruna Mustafa, CBN Director of the Financial Policy and Regulation Department, detailed the latest instructions. The circular clarified that these guidelines are part of efforts to realign the BDC sub-sector to play a more effective role in Nigeria’s foreign exchange market.
The guidelines establish new licensing criteria and classifications for BDCs and update permissible activities, financial prerequisites, corporate governance standards, and AML/CFT/CPF provisions. It was stated in the circular that, “All existing BDCs must reapply for a new license based on any of the Tiers or license categories they choose from the Guidelines.
They must satisfy the minimum capital requirements for the chosen license category within six months from the Guidelines’ effective date.” Furthermore, new BDC license applicants must meet the conditions for acquiring a license based on their selected tier or category as outlined in the Guidelines.
BDC operators must also provide the names of promoters, the proposed BDC name, the promoter’s email address, and the promoter’s phone number.
