Wuse Zone 4, the home to most bureau de change in Abuja has been raided by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Friday.
The raid, conducted in other locations across the country, was undertaken days after the CBN blamed currency speculators for exacerbating the crash of the naira against the dollar and other foreign currencies.
An authoritative source at the EFCC told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja that the raid was a product of weeks of a covert operation.
“The idea is to dislodge currency speculators who’re massively mopping up all available foreign currencies,” the source said.
According to the source, enough intelligence was gathered that some people with massive naira inflow had mobilised resources and are buying up available foreign currency, especially the dollar.
“Similar operations have also been carried out at major airports in the country.
“It is a nationwide coordinated operation and will be extended to major commercial cities of Kano, Lagos and Port Harcourt,” he added.
Efforts to get official confirmation on the raid from EFCC spokesperson, Wilson Uwujaren, were not successful as his phone was switched off.