By Milcah Tanimu

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has introduced a foreign exchange price verification system aimed at granting importers access to foreign exchange. This new development was disclosed in a statement issued by the CBN’s Trade and Exchange Department on Thursday evening.

The apex bank emphasized that the use of the price verification portal is now mandatory for all Form M requests. The implementation of the price verification portal will commence on August 31, 2023.

The official statement conveyed, “After successfully conducting the pilot run and providing training to all banks, the Central Bank of Nigeria hereby announces the official launch of the Price Verification System (PVS).”

The statement further clarified that all applications for Forms M, which are documents used for import and export transactions, must be accompanied by a valid price verification report generated through the price verification portal.

“To clarify, with this announcement, the price verification report is now a mandatory trade document that must be obtained before the completion of a Form M,” the statement elaborated.

The CBN urged all authorized dealers to communicate this new requirement to their customers. Additionally, the statement warned that any violation of these regulations will result in appropriate sanctions being imposed.

This move by the CBN underscores its commitment to ensuring transparency and accountability in foreign exchange transactions and trade-related processes.