The gap between Nigeria’s official and parallel-market dollar rates narrowed on Tuesday, September 15, 2026, as the naira strengthened in the informal market but weakened marginally at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market, NAFEM.
The naira closed at ₦1,329/$1 at NAFEM, compared with ₦1,328.50/$1 on Friday, September 11, representing a depreciation of 50 kobo, or about 0.04%.
In the parallel market, however, Bureau de Change operators quoted the dollar at ₦1,375/$1, an improvement of ₦5 from ₦1,380/$1 the previous day. That represents a 0.36% appreciation in the naira.
The contrasting movements brought the gap between the two markets to approximately ₦46/$, equivalent to a parallel-market premium of about 3.5% over the official rate.
That spread remains economically important, but the direction matters. A narrowing gap reduces the incentive for arbitrage between the formal and informal markets and makes the official market a more credible reference point for businesses and households. It is also a useful indicator of how far Nigeria’s foreign-exchange market has progressed towards genuine convergence.
The spread has become increasingly important because headline exchange-rate stability alone does not necessarily mean that businesses and consumers can obtain dollars at the same price. When the parallel-market premium widens, it usually indicates that some demand is not being fully met through formal channels. When it narrows, it suggests that either official-market liquidity is improving, pressure in the informal market is easing, or both.
On Tuesday, the narrowing came mainly from the parallel market. The official rate weakened slightly, while the street rate appreciated by ₦5. This means the convergence was not driven by a weaker official naira moving towards the parallel price, but by the informal-market rate moving closer to the formal-market benchmark.
That distinction is significant. For policymakers, the preferable route to convergence is generally one in which better FX supply and easier access pull the parallel rate towards the official market, rather than one in which the official rate depreciates sharply to close the gap.
The British pound was quoted at ₦1,847/£1, compared with ₦1,845/£1 previously, representing a ₦2, or 0.11%, decline in the value of the naira against sterling.
The euro also strengthened against the naira, rising to ₦1,570/€1 from ₦1,560/€1, a ₦10, or 0.64%, movement. The Canadian dollar edged up to ₦986/C$1 from ₦985/C$1.
Rising Reserves Provide Additional Support
Nigeria’s external reserves have continued to rise, providing a stronger buffer for the foreign-exchange market. CBN data showed reserves rising to $54.487 billion as of September 11, from $54.410 billion the previous day.
Earlier in September, reserves had already crossed the $54 billion mark for the first time since 2008, extending a steady accumulation that has strengthened Nigeria’s external position.
The reserve build-up matters because it gives the Central Bank greater capacity to respond to periods of FX stress, while stronger inflows and improved liquidity can reduce the need for businesses and households to resort to the parallel market.
The immediate story on September 15 is therefore not simply that the naira weakened marginally at NAFEM. It is that the official–parallel gap moved down to about ₦46/$, with the street market doing most of the adjustment.
For the sustainability of Nigeria’s FX reforms, that spread may ultimately matter as much as the headline official exchange rate.
