By Peace Udugba
Turnover in Nigeria’s Foreign Exchange (FX) Spot and Derivatives markets surged by 146.12% to $5.06 billion in the week ended August 21, 2026, according to the latest FMDQ Foreign Exchange Market Analysis Report.
The total turnover rose by $3.00 billion, from $2.05 billion recorded in the week ended August 14, 2026, to $5.06 billion during the review week.
The sharp week-on-week increase was driven entirely by transactions in the FX Spot market, which recorded a turnover of $5.01 billion, representing a 155.02% increase or $3.04 billion compared with the $1.96 billion recorded in the previous week.
FX Spot transactions accounted for 99.03% of total FX market turnover during the week, with a daily average of $1.00 billion.
In contrast, turnover in the FX Derivatives market declined by 46.09%, falling from $90.89 million in the week ended August 14 to $49 million in the week ended August 21.
The decline in FX Derivatives turnover was entirely driven by a 46.09% decrease in FX Forwards transactions, which fell by $41.89 million from $90.89 million to $49 million.
Table 1: Weekly FX Turnover Analysis
The figures indicate a significant increase in activity in Nigeria’s FX Spot market during the week, which more than offset the decline recorded in FX Derivatives transactions.
