Nigeria’s net foreign exchange reserves grew 772% over the last two years — rising to $34.8 billion in 2025 from $3.99 billion in 2023, according to central bank Governor Olayemi Cardoso.
For much of the last decade, Nigeria faced a dollar shortage crisis that left foreign companies unable to move earnings abroad, which deterred investors, even as the government struggled with oil theft along pipelines that limited forex revenues.
Foreign currency reserves have grown following a raft of policy changes put in place by Nigerian President Bola Tinubu since taking office in 2023, including removing a fixed peg for the naira currency, while the central bank has resolved a backlog of forex obligations. Better reserve management and stronger dollar inflows have continued to lift the country’s foreign currency reserves, which stood at $23.11 billion at the end of 2024, Cardoso said.
