Apex Bank sells N676.65bn at first OMO auction in April

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has intensified efforts to manage the money supply by conducting its first Open Market Operations (OMO) auction in April 2024 and selling N676.65 billion in the process. There was significant interest from investors in the 363-day OMO auction by CBN, with subscriptions reaching N1.16 trillion, thus oversubscribing the N350 billion bills offered. The apex bank sells the OMO bills at a high of 21.13 per cent, marking it another record high for the institution as it determined to tackle the inflation rate and stabilize the local currency. The CBN’s total sales for the 365-day OMO auction stood at N652.40 billion. The 188-day bill also had N75 billion on offer but saw a lower subscription of just N20.25 billion, with a stop rate of 19.5 per cent and only N7.25 billion sold. For the 97-day bill, N75 billion was made available, with N17 billion subscriptions by investors at a stop rate of 19 per cent. The CBN, however, sold N17 billion on a 97-day OMO offered on April 3, 2024. The central bank’s aggressive OMO auctions reflect its proactive approach to controlling liquidity in the economy.