On Thursday, July 25, 2024, the Federal Government revealed plans to issue $500 million in dollar-denominated securities within the domestic market to strengthen the Naira.
Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, announced the initiative at an event in Abuja. The issuance is expected to occur within the next three to four weeks and aims to attract investments from Nigerians in the Diaspora and those with savings abroad.
Edun emphasized that the move leverages Nigeria’s financial system rather than relying on traditional Western financial structures or Eurobonds.
He stated: “We have an open exchange rate system, it’s not illegal and so we have the issuance of a dollar-denominated security, not depending on the financial architecture of the Western world, not depending on the kind of architecture that you use to raise Eurobonds.
“We’re using the Nigerian financial system, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the banking system, the investment bankers to issue $500 million in the first instance that will be available and will attract foreign currency held by Nigerians abroad and anybody else who buys into the macroeconomic reform efforts of President Bola Tinubu.
“That issue is a challenge to the best and the brightest in the financial markets. It is due to open in the next three to four weeks maximum.”
He also noted that the government is not currently considering a Eurobond offering, preferring to focus on encouraging Nigerians to repatriate their funds and invest in Nigeria’s economic recovery.
““Eurobond is one of the options that we have, the markets are open to us, our ratings and our performance merit it. But we prefer in the first instance to challenge Nigerians to come home with their money and be part of the Nigerian reform success story,” Edun added.
