CBN: Nigeria’s FX supply rises 20.5% to $8.94 billion in 2025
Nigeria's FX supply climbed 20.5% to $8.94 billion in 2025, CBN data show, though demand for dollars rose even faster.
CBN: Nigeria's FX Supply Rises 20.5% to $8.94 Billion in 2025
Nigeria's foreign exchange supply rose by 20.5% to $8.94 billion in 2025, up from $7.43 billion in 2024, according to figures published in the Central Bank of Nigeria's (CBN) 2025 Statistical Bulletin. The increase — an additional $1.51 billion supplied to the market over the year — comes even as demand for foreign currency grew at a considerably faster pace, highlighting a foreign exchange market that remains tight despite improving liquidity.
What the Data Shows
According to the CBN's bulletin, FX supply climbed steadily but unevenly through 2025. Monthly figures started weak, at $590.64 million in January and $607.63 million in February, before jumping sharply to $1.04 billion in March and reaching a yearly high of $1.65 billion in April. Momentum then faded through the middle of the year: supply fell to $838.93 million in May, $676.31 million in June, rose modestly to $759.02 million in July, then declined again to $677.84 million in August, $399.80 million in September, and a low of $150.10 million in October, before recovering to $910.73 million in December.
The CBN's own FX sales figure — a narrower measure of the central bank's direct market interventions — told a more dramatic story: CBN FX sales rose 126.37% to $8.94 billion in 2025, up from $3.95 billion in 2024, according to Financial Markets Dealers Association (FMDA) data. That sharp rise reflects continued central bank support for the market even as its overall share of total FX supply has fallen. In 2025, the CBN's contribution to total market FX supply averaged 12.9%, down sharply from 77.9% at the height of the COVID-19 era in March 2020 — a shift the CBN and analysts frame as evidence the market is deepening, with private and autonomous sources increasingly driving supply rather than direct central bank intervention.
Inflows Rose, But Demand Rose Faster
Beyond the direct supply figure, the CBN reported that total foreign exchange inflows into Nigeria increased 13.81% to $109.86 billion in 2025, up from $96.53 billion in 2024. The FMDA's broader tally put total 2025 inflows even higher, at $112 billion, with autonomous sources — those outside the CBN's direct control — accounting for 64.94% of that total. Autonomous inflows nearly doubled over two years, rising to $72.91 billion in 2025 from $59.29 billion in 2024 and $41.80 billion in 2023, a trend analysts have linked to restored investor confidence following the clearance of over $7 billion in longstanding FX backlogs and the 2023 unification of Nigeria's exchange rates.
FX outflows, however, grew even faster than inflows — rising 27.83% to $49.05 billion in 2025, up from $38.37 billion in 2024. As a result, Nigeria's net FX inflow rose only moderately, to $60.81 billion in 2025 from $58.16 billion in 2024.
Perhaps most notably, FX utilisation — a measure of actual demand fulfilled in the market — surged 91.1% to $50.93 billion in 2025, up from $26.65 billion in 2024, the highest annual level since 2019. That means demand for foreign currency grew far faster than the supply feeding it, underscoring that Nigeria's improved FX liquidity has not eliminated the underlying imbalance between supply and demand in the market.
Historical and Economic Context
The 2025 figures sit within a broader multi-year recovery narrative for Nigeria's foreign exchange market, which underwent significant reform beginning in 2023 under CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso, including the unification of previously fragmented exchange rate windows and efforts to clear a multibillion-dollar backlog of unmet FX demand from businesses and investors. Nigeria's Net Foreign Exchange Reserve — a measure that adjusts gross reserves for near-term liabilities such as FX swaps — rose 479% to $23.11 billion in 2024, up from just $3.99 billion in 2023, according to earlier CBN disclosures, reflecting the scale of the turnaround from the acute FX scarcity of preceding years.
By August 2026, Nigeria's gross external reserves had climbed further, to around $53.5 billion — the highest level in more than a decade — supporting a period of relative naira stability, with the currency trading at roughly N1,329–1,330 to the dollar in the official market through much of September 2026.
Why It Matters for Africa
The FX supply and demand dynamics revealed in the CBN's 2025 data carry several implications for Nigeria's economy and, by extension, regional markets that track its trajectory:
Import costs and inflation. The gap between rising FX utilisation ($50.93 billion) and slower-growing supply ($8.94 billion in direct CBN sales) suggests continued pressure on importers seeking dollars, which can filter through to consumer prices for imported goods.
Business credit costs. Nigerian manufacturers have faced a 53% increase in the average cost of bank credit between 2020 and 2025, with average borrowing rates reaching 32.2% according to Manufacturers Association of Nigeria data — a burden compounded by FX access challenges for businesses reliant on imported inputs or machinery.
Investor confidence signal. The near-doubling of autonomous FX inflows over two years is a meaningful indicator that reforms since 2023 are attracting private capital independent of central bank intervention, a dynamic regional peers pursuing similar currency reforms are likely watching closely.
Market depth and de-risking. A declining CBN share of total FX supply (down to 12.9% in 2025) points toward a maturing, more privately driven foreign exchange market — a structural shift with implications for how sustainable Nigeria's currency stability proves to be during future periods of external shock.
Market Data at a Glance
Metric | 2025 | 2024 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
CBN FX supply (Statistical Bulletin) | $8.94bn | $7.43bn | +20.5% |
CBN FX sales (FMDA measure) | $8.94bn | $3.95bn | +126.37% |
Total FX inflows (CBN) | $109.86bn | $96.53bn | +13.81% |
Total FX inflows (FMDA) | $112bn | — | — |
Autonomous inflows | $72.91bn | $59.29bn | +23% |
FX outflows | $49.05bn | $38.37bn | +27.83% |
Net FX inflow | $60.81bn | $58.16bn | +4.6% |
FX utilisation | $50.93bn | $26.65bn | +91.1% |
Figures from the CBN's 2025 Statistical Bulletin and Financial Markets Dealers Association (FMDA) data, as reported September 2026.
What Businesses and Investors Should Watch
Subsequent CBN statistical releases for any sectoral breakdown of FX supply sources, which the current bulletin does not provide.
The trajectory of autonomous versus CBN-driven FX supply, as a signal of how durable Nigeria's currency market reforms prove over time.
Naira exchange rate stability in official and parallel markets, given the continued gap between FX demand and supply revealed in the 2025 data.
External reserve levels, which have continued climbing into 2026 and provide the buffer supporting recent naira stability.
Key Takeaways
For Businesses
Factor continued FX market tightness into import cost planning, despite headline improvements in supply.
Monitor credit cost trends, given the compounding effect of high borrowing rates and FX access challenges on production costs.
For Investors
Track the growing share of autonomous FX inflows as an indicator of private-sector confidence in Nigeria's currency reforms.
Watch external reserve trends into 2026 for signals on the sustainability of naira stability.
For General Readers
Understand that a rise in FX supply doesn't necessarily mean scarcity has ended — demand for dollars grew even faster in 2025.
Follow how sustained reserve growth and reduced CBN market dominance may affect longer-term currency stability.
How MarketPulse Africa Helps
For readers tracking Nigeria's foreign exchange market, MarketPulse Africa's Macro & Economy coverage brings together CBN data releases, currency market trends, and reserve levels shaping the naira's trajectory. MarketPulse Africa will continue monitoring how supply and demand dynamics evolve as Nigeria's FX reforms mature.
Conclusion
Nigeria's FX supply rose 20.5% to $8.94 billion in 2025, a genuine improvement reflecting ongoing reform momentum — but the CBN's own data shows demand for foreign currency grew even faster, with FX utilisation surging 91.1% over the same period. For businesses, investors and policymakers, the takeaway is nuanced: Nigeria's external liquidity position has clearly strengthened since 2023, but the underlying gap between FX supply and demand remains a structural feature of the market to watch closely. Follow MarketPulse Africa for continued coverage and real-time intelligence on African markets.
