Nigeria's FX Utilisation Reaches $18.34 Billion in Q2 2026

In the second quarter of 2026, Nigeria's foreign exchange utilisation rose to $18.34 billion, marking the highest quarterly level since Q3 2011. This increase of 12.84% from approximately $16.25 billion in Q1 2026 and 52.42% from $12.03 billion in Q2 2025 was primarily driven by services and financial payments rather than merchandise imports.

According to the Financial Markets Dealers Association (FMDA) Q2 2026 FX Market Update, invisible-related transactions accounted for the largest share, reaching a record $13.24 billion, which is 72.19% of the total and a 93.16% increase from $6.85 billion a year earlier. Merchandise imports decreased slightly to $5.10 billion, down 1.49% year on year.

The report indicated that the strength in financial-services demand was linked to cross-border investment and payment flows. Additionally, Nigeria's foreign exchange inflows became more reliant on autonomous sources, with autonomous inflows increasing to $23.31 billion, their highest since Q1 2020.