Naira Gains at Official and Black Markets as Interbank FX Turnover Jumps 426.9%

The naira strengthened against the United States dollar at both the official and parallel foreign exchange markets on Wednesday, October 14, 2026, with analysts projecting relative stability in the near term.

At the official Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM), the naira closed at N1,332.59/$1, a gain of 38 kobo or 0.03% from N1,332.97/$1 on Tuesday. At the black market, Bureau de Change operators quoted the dollar at N1,358, a N2 improvement from the N1,360 recorded in the previous session.

The picture was not uniform across all channels. At the GTBank forex desk, the naira weakened slightly by N1, with the dollar trading at N1,340 compared to N1,339 the day before.

Naira also rises against pound, euro

The local currency made gains against other major currencies at the official window. Against the British pound, the naira rose by 51 kobo to close at N1,765.55/£1 from N1,766.06/£1. Against the euro, it improved to N1,489.15/€1 from N1,490.79/€1, a gain of N1.64.

Interbank turnover surges

Activity in the interbank market rose sharply during the session. Foreign exchange turnover jumped by 426.9% to $490.855 million, up from $93.163 million recorded on Tuesday. The Central Bank of Nigeria reported that the number of foreign exchange deals at the interbank level rose to 172 during the session.

Analysts see near-term stability

AIICO Capital Limited said it expects the naira to remain relatively stable at the official window in the near term, with the gap between official and parallel market rates staying close to 3%.

The investment firm said: "Expect the Naira to stay stable at the official window, with the parallel gap staying near 3%. Oil above US$100 should keep dollar supply steady and support the naira."

Market analysts noted that the direction of foreign exchange inflows in the coming sessions will depend largely on continued foreign portfolio participation and a recovery in domestic sources of dollar supply.

The following exchange rates were reported for selected foreign currencies and units:

CFA franc: N2.27
Chinese yuan/renminbi: N199.10
Danish krone: N198.28
Euro: N1,491.57
Japanese yen: N8.39
Saudi riyal: N354.92
South African rand: N80.37
Special Drawing Rights (SDR): N1,802.78
Swiss franc: N1,590.77
British pound sterling: N1,765.55
US dollar: N1,332.59
West African Unit of Account (WAUA): N1,802.33
UAE dirham: N362.83

The near 3% spread between the official and parallel markets is the number to watch for importers and exporters. A narrow gap reduces the incentive to source dollars outside the banking system, which matters for businesses that price goods off the parallel rate.