The Monetary, Credit, Foreign Trade, and Exchange Policy Guidelines for Fiscal Years 2024 – 2025 document published on Tuesday, September 17, 2024, has been withdrawn by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

The apex bank made known the invalidation in an unsigned statement published on its website on Friday.

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It averred that the rescinding of the decision was to minimise the risk of any further misrepresentation or misinterpretation, resulting in confusion among stakeholders.

As at Tuesday, excerpts of the policy documents expressed that the lenders’ lender would sustain Ways and Means Advances to the Federal Government at a five percent limit for the fiscal years 2024-2025.

The interest stipulation, however, was contrary to a bill passed by the National Assembly which raised the maximum borrowing percentage in the Act from five percent to 10 percent.

It also had the reinstatement of the cybersecurity levy, which was suspended earlier this year, after a deafening public outcry.

In refuting the claims, the CBN said the guidelines were misunderstood by some outlets as new policies when, they were merely a compilation of previously issued policies and directives effective until December 31, 2023.

It also noted that some policies mentioned in the guidelines have been revised or replaced by newer updates.

The statement read, “The attention of the Central Bank of Nigeria has been drawn to certain instances of misinterpretation or misrepresentation of its biennial publication on Monetary, Credit, Foreign Trade, and Exchange Policy Guidelines published on September 17, 2024.

“In response, the CBN has temporarily withdrawn the document to minimise the risk of any further misrepresentation. As is stated explicitly in the document to guide stakeholders, the CBN reiterates that the publication is a compilation of previously issued policies and guidelines issued by the bank up to a cut-off date, typically December 31 of the relevant year.

“As in all previous editions, the current document is intended to achieve the following objectives: A single reference source for the ease and convenience of stakeholders. A valid compilation of policies, directives, and guidelines for adjudication in conflict situations involving stakeholders.”

The apex bank also noted that as a compendium of previously issued policies and guidelines, the provisions remained applicable, only to the extent that there had been no updates or revisions to the guidelines and policies contained therein.

“In line with prior editions, the most recent publication (January 2024) contains policies and guidelines issued by the bank up to December 31, 2023, some of which will remain relevant during the period 2024 – 2025,” the bank stated.

Continuing, the statement noted that, “In the light of these clarifications, we ask stakeholders to note the following: Some recent media publications referencing aspects of the guidelines refer to policy positions of the bank issued prior to December 31, 2023, which have changed in the light of revisions and updates in 2024. One example is the Cyber Security Levy, which was suspended in May 2024, superseding the circular reported in the guidelines.

“Certain technical aspects of the guidelines have been widely misreported and misrepresented. For example, reports have mistakenly sought to link the fuel subsidy removal to external reserves. Such reports essentially missed the analytical basis for the original statement, which was intended to observe a potential risk that was to be mitigated by policy. More recently, policies of the bank around the naira exchange rate and those of the fiscal authorities have positively altered the outlook of the subject in question.

“In summary, the guidelines must primarily be viewed as a record of policies, circulars and directives issued by the bank up to the end of 2023. They are not new directives and should not be reported as such.

“The bank will continue to provide clear monetary policy direction and advice for the overall good of the economy. We urge all stakeholders to seek clarification of information about the Bank before publishing,” the statement concluded.

As part of efforts to ensure sustained growth for the Keystone Bank, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has put in place a new board of directors for the lender.

The development was made public on Wednesday in a statement by the commercial bank.

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From the statement, it was gathered that Lady Ada Chukwudozie has been appointed as the new board chairman, alongside five other non-executive directors, made up of Abdul-Rahman Esene, Fola Akande, Akintola Ayodeji Olusoji, Obijiaku Samuel, and Senator Farouk Bello.

The CBN also named two new executive directors, Ladi Oluwole and Abubakar Usman Bello.

Lady Chukwudozie, a prominent figure in Nigeria’s corporate sector, brings nearly three decades of experience in business strategy, management, and administration.

Her expertise cuts across multiple industries, including De-Endy Industrial Company Limited, Dozzy Group, the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, and Vogue Afrique Magazine.

On his part, Esene, comes with over 43 years of experience in banking, investment management, and corporate finance.

He has held leadership roles in major institutions such as Fidelity Bank, Afrinvest, and Global Arbitrage International Inc.

Similarly, Akande boasts over 25 years of experience in legal, compliance, and risk management. She had worked with global brands like Cadbury, Stanbic Chartered Bank and Shell.

While Olusoji has a distinguished 30-year career in accounting, finance, and business development, having served at institutions such as Sterling Bank, Access Bank, and Intercontinental Bank.

For the board position, Obijiaku comes with more than 35 years of experience in banking and treasury operations, has left a significant mark on Nigeria’s financial sector, previously working with Zenith Bank and Fidelity Bank.

Senator Bello is a seasoned banker with over 20 years of experience, has led initiatives across both the public and private sectors, including the National Assembly and Guaranty Trust Bank.

In the same vein, the two new executive directors bring their vast expertise to the table.

Oluwole, the new Executive Director of Risk Management, comes with over two decades of experience in credit and enterprise risk management, including previous roles at Bank of America.

On his part, Bello, Executive Director for the Northern Directorate, has extensive experience managing corporate, retail, and public sector clients.

On the appointments, Managing Director/CEO, Keystone Bank, Hassan Imam, expressed confidence in the new board members, stating that their wealth of experience would play a crucial role in the bank’s continued repositioning and growth.

“We are pleased to welcome the new chairman, non-executive directors, and executive directors to the board of Keystone Bank. We are confident that their extensive experience will be invaluable as we continue to reposition the bank to seize emerging economic opportunities while maintaining strong corporate governance and providing our customers with a secure and reliable banking experience,” Imam said.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump, alongside his sons and several entrepreneurs, introduced a cryptocurrency platform late Monday, though few details were shared.

During a two-hour online event, the Trump family’s crypto initiative remained vague, with the primary offering being digital “tokens” that allow users to participate in platform decisions by voting.

The event went ahead as planned despite an apparent assassination attempt against Trump on Sunday at his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida.

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World Liberty Financial intends to offer services based on so-called decentralized finance, a mechanism that eliminates the need for an intermediary such as a bank to carry out transactions with a third party, the politics-laced discussion indicated.

Decentralized finance, or DeFi, is based on so-called blockchain technology, which keeps a theoretically open but tamper-proof record of transactions.

World Liberty Financial will enable users to lend or borrow cryptocurrencies to or from one another, a service already offered by many platforms, one of the best-known of which is Aave.

The former president’s son Donald Trump Jr. touted this as “the start of a financial revolution,” during a session streamed on X, formerly Twitter.

Zachary Folkman and Chase Herro, the linchpins of the project and established cryptocurrency entrepreneurs, said the platform would primarily use “stablecoins”, which are backed by a traditional currency, most often the dollar.

As a result, they are free from the sometimes brutal fluctuations experienced by digital currencies untethered to real-world money.

World Liberty Financial wants to attract the masses to cryptocurrencies, creating a platform easily accessible to people, Folkman said.

Project leaders said they would sell tokens that give owners the right to take part in the governance of the platform, with 63 per cent of them offered to the public, 20 per cent going to the founding team and the rest set aside as rewards for users.

No timetable for the project was disclosed.

During his presidency, Trump labeled cryptocurrencies as a scam, but he has since drastically shifted his stance, now portraying himself as a “pro-Bitcoin president” if re-elected in November.

In taking this position, he opposes the Biden administration, which is viewed as advocating for increased regulation of the crypto industry.