The governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso, said the Deloitte audit revealed that $2.4 billion out of the reported $7 billion of outstanding foreign exchange liabilities of the federal government are not valid for settlement.
Jerrymusa.com reports that Cardoso revealed this information on Monday during an interview with Arise Television. He revealed that the bank has paid out $2.3 billion for approved foreign exchange requests.
The governor of the CBN stated that there are currently $2.2 billion in outstanding foreign exchange liabilities.
2.4 Billion of Forex Claim is Fraudulent
Cardoso went on to say that a portion of the $7 billion in unpaid FX claims were fraudulent, citing the findings of a forensic investigation conducted by Deloitte Management Consultant under the apex bank’s commission.
The governor of the CBN expressed his confidence that the unpaid foreign exchange liabilities would be settled soon.
Cardoso told the people of Nigeria that the CBN would not reimburse them for foreign exchange requests that were not legitimately made.
The bank has also sent letters to licenced dealers outlining the discrepancies that have been found.
“And regrettably, to be honest, I don’t think many of those have been satisfactorily contested.
“In a lot of ways, the outcome was shocking; it was particularly shocking.
“Out of about $7 billion, we found that about $2.4 billion had problems, which we felt had no right to be there. There were a variety of offences related to that $2.4 billion.
“Examples include the lack of legitimate import documentation, the existence of fictitious organisations in some situations, and the situation where beneficiaries and account parties requested foreign exchange but received more than they requested.
“And some received it without even asking for it. There were numerous violations there, which I estimated to be worth roughly $2.4 billion out of the $7 billion figure.”