The Central Bank of Nigeria has decided to proceed with plans to release another $150 million in frozen cash to international airlines.
Although, CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, announced on Monday that the bank would release $120 million in trapped funds owed to foreign airlines operating in the nation, a source with one of the airlines told New Telegraph under the condition of anonymity that the CBN was actually planning to release another $150 million to the carriers in the coming days.
According to the source, Emefiele made a suggestion that they were planning to release an additional $150 million during a meeting with the carriers this past weekend.
“In a meeting, we held with the CBN Governor, he hinted that the apex bank would release soon another $150 million to the airline. This is heart-warming,” the source revealed.
How much of that is yet up to the CBN to clear is still unknown.
Furthermore, it is unknown how much money has accumulated since the CBN released the $200 million that remained of the 265 million dollars. Given the release of $265 million on August 26, 2022, there are signs that the stuck funds may have accumulated since then.
In June, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) acknowledged that Nigeria had refused to accept $464 million in revenue from foreign airlines, stating that the action would “damage the country down the road.”
