Early into the new month, November; operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) followed the hunch to raid the Wuse Zone 4 axis, the bureau de change trading hub in Abuja and arrested illegal operators, along side customers.
According to reports; the operation is said to be part of efforts to stop the free fall of the Naira against the dollar. Sources from The PUNCH states that “the raids in the two cities, which netted a good number of illegal BDC operators and individuals suspected to be customers, would also be extended to Lagos, Onitsha, Ibadan, Port Harcourt and other major cities across the country”.
This followed alleged currency speculation which has led to the hike in exchange rate of $1 (United States) selling for over N800. EFCC Executive Chairman Abdulrasheed Bawa whom had earlier said in a news statement to invoking Section 2 (1) of the Money Laundering Act 2022 to check money launderers has just succeeded in the Abuja raid.
Also, according to a news statement last week, by Bawa, he had warned BDC operators against serving as conduit pipes for currency hoarders.
He said: “It is, therefore, pertinent to issue this stern warning to Bureau de Change operators to be wary of currency hoarders who would attempt to seize this opportunity to offload the currencies they had illegally stashed.
“The commission will spare no effort to bring to book any financial services operator who runs afoul of extant laws and regulations.”
To this statement has Bawa proven that he is prowess to delivering the task .
