Foreign Airlines Refute CBN’s Settled FX Backlog Claim, Say $700m Still Trapped

Kingsley Nwokoma, the President, Association of Foreign Airlines and Representatives in Nigeria, AFARN, has faulted Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) claim on the Foreign Exchange (FX) backlog settlement.

Recall that the CBN on Wednesday announced in a statement that the apex bank recently concluded the payment of $1.5 billion to settle obligations to bank customers, effectively settling the residual balance of the FX backlog.

However, Nwokoma, disclosed on Thursday that about $700 million belonging to foreign airlines was still trapped in the country.

Nwokoma, who made the disclosure in an interview with Leadership, challenged the apex bank to present evidence to corroborate its claim of cleared backlog of FX belonging to the foreign airlines.

READ ALSO: “All Valid FX Backlog Cleared” – CBN Reveals

“This statement is just like the same thing they said the last time.

“If they say they cleared all forex backlog, and which include the foreign airlines’ backlog, it’s easy, it’s just for them to show everyone evidence to see that the foreign airlines backlog has been paid.

“However, it’s still the same amount they paid.

“They paid twice and we all know that the foreign airlines are complaining that they are still being owed over $700 million.

“If they say they have cleared it, then they should be transparent because transparency means showing how much they have paid to each sector, they should let us know,” Nwokoma stated