CBN Raises Interest Rate To 15.5% To Curb Rising Inflation
The Central Bank of Nigeria has stated that it will implement aggressive Cash Reserve Requirement “CRR” measures by mopping up liquidity from commercial banks by Thursday latest.
He warned banks to fund their accounts immediately.
This was revealed by CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele as he briefed the media following the end of the monetary policy committee meeting.
The Governor also explained that banks that fail to fund their bank accounts will be denied access to the foreign exchange market.
The apex bank believes increased liquidity is one of the major reasons why the exchange rate has been depreciating.
The MPC voted to increase interest rates to a whopping 15.5% as the apex bank battles rising inflation amidst a fiscal crisis.
The policy-setting committee of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) raised the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR), which measures interest rate, from 14 per cent to 15.5 per cent to tame rising inflation.
In July, the interest rate was raised from 13 per cent to 14 per cent.
The monetary policy rate (MPR) is the baseline interest rate in an economy, every other interest rate used within an economy is built on it.
Addressing journalists on Tuesday after the committee’s meeting at the CBN headquarters in Abuja, Godwin Emefiele, governor of the apex bank, said 10 members of the committee voted for the rate hike.
In August, Nigeria’s inflation rate rose to a nearly two-decade high at 20.52%.