The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recently disqualified several prominent banks from participating in its Retail Dutch Auction System (rDAS) held on August 6. According to a statement by Omolara Duke, the Director of the Financial Markets Department at CBN, six banks had their bids, totaling $279 million, rejected due to compliance issues, including late submissions and invalid forms.
Initially, the auction attracted bids worth $1.19 billion, but after evaluation, only $815.36 million in bids met the central bank’s compliance standards. The CBN emphasized the need for adherence to submission guidelines, highlighting that bids must be submitted between 9:00 AM and 3:00 PM on auction days. The disqualified banks, including major institutions such as United Bank for Africa (UBA), First City Monument Bank (FCMB), Stanbic Bank, Wema Bank, Suntrust, and Rand, were penalized for various non-compliance issues.
The CBN’s auction is part of its ongoing efforts to manage liquidity in the foreign exchange (FX) market and promote exchange rate stability. Successful bids were settled on August 8, with Zenith Bank emerging as the top recipient, securing over $267 million. Union Bank and GTB also featured prominently among the successful bidders.
