CBN Stops Naira4Dollar, RT200 Rebate schemes

The Central Bank of Nigeria has announced that the RT200 rebate scheme and the Naira4Dollar remittance scheme will stop with effect from June 30.

The apex bank announced the development in a circular issued on Wednesday and signed by Angela Sere-Ejembi, Director, Financial Markets Department.

”The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) wishes to inform all authorized dealers and the general public of the following immediate changes to operations in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange (FX) Market: Cessation of RT200 Rebate Scheme and the Naira4Dollar Remittance Scheme, with effect from 30 June 2023,” the circular reads in part.

Launched last year, the Race to $200 billion in FX Repatriation (RT200FX) initiative was established to stimulate non-oil exports with a $200 billion FX income target in the next three to five years.

Also Read: RT200: CBN Reiterates Commitment to Forex Expansion

Under the scheme, a rebate of N65 for every $1 of repatriated non-oil export proceeds is paid to exporters of semi-finished and finished goods, while exporters of unprocessed items enjoy a rebate of  N25/$.

On the other hand, the Naira 4 Dollar Scheme was introduced in March 2021 as an incentive for senders and recipients of international money transfers. The policy entailed the payment of N5 for every $1 received as a remittance inflow.

Both policies were introduced by the CBN under the leadership of Godwin Emefiele, the suspended Governor.

Recall, Business Remarks reported that Emefiele noted that the RT200 programme had made good progress in export proceed repatriation since its establishment in February 2022.

In his words, Emefiele said “Available data shows that repatriation due to the programme increased by 40 per cent from $3.0bn in 2021 to $5.6bn at the end of 2022.

“The momentum for 2023 is equally showing strong numbers and impressive prospects. In the first quarter of 2023, a total of $1.7bn was repatriated to the economy while about $790m was sold at the I&E window year-to-date.”