The information was provided in a circular dated July 10, 2023, signed by O.S. Nnaji, the Director of the Trade and Exchange Department at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Furthermore, the CBN has made it mandatory that the rate for naira payouts be determined using the foreign exchange rate from the investors and exporters (I&E) window.

This new directive means that recipients of diaspora remittances will now have the additional option of receiving their funds in Nigerian naira, in addition to the existing choices of receiving funds in dollars or eNaira.

The circular addressed various parties, including the general public, deposit money banks, international money transfer operators (IMTOs), and others. According to the statement, the Central Bank of Nigeria has announced that the Naira can now be chosen as a payout option for receiving funds from international money transfers. This announcement is in reference to a previous circular dated November 30, 2020, with the subject mentioned.

Henceforth, recipients of diaspora remittances through the IMTOs approved by the CBN, as listed in the attached document, will have the choice to receive their payments in Naira, alongside the existing options of USD and eNaira.

To clarify, it is required that the International Money Transfer Operators make the payouts based on the anchor rate of the Investor & Exporter's window on the day of the transaction.

The circular emphasized that the regulation is effective immediately and strict compliance is required.

In addition, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) included an updated list of registered International Monetary Transfer Operators (IMTOs) operating in the country.

The CBN has granted approval to five additional IMTOs to facilitate diaspora remittances.

The newly authorized IMTOs are CSL Pay Limited, e-2-e Pay Limited, LeadRemit Limited, Lycamoney Financial services Limited, and SimbaPay Limited.