Naira Crashes Against Dollar Hours After Presidency Celebrates Gains

The Nigerian Naira took a sharp nosedive against the U.S. Dollar on Thursday, just a day after the Presidency had celebrated a brief gain in the currency’s value.

According to data from FMDQ Securities Exchange, the Naira weakened significantly, trading at N1,649.76 per dollar on Thursday, compared to N1,558.75 the previous day. This represents a depreciation of N91.01 within 24 hours, erasing the N81 gain recorded on Wednesday.

In the parallel market, the Naira also suffered a setback, falling by N5 to exchange at N1,655 per dollar, down from N1,650 the day before.

The drop comes just 24 hours after Bayo Onanuga, a media aide to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, took to social media to celebrate the Naira’s rise to N1,558 per dollar on Wednesday. “The currency closed at 1,558 naira per dollar, its most substantial level against the greenback since Aug. 21,” he said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

Onanuga attributed Wednesday’s gain to the government’s successful raising of $900 million through its first domestic sale of dollar-denominated bonds. However, Thursday’s sharp decline has overshadowed the earlier optimism, raising concerns about the Naira’s continued volatility.