Nigeria recorded an external reserve of $41,001,830,139.96 (forty-one billion dollars) on 19 August, according to data published today by the Central Bank.
Net foreign reserve was $40.3 billion. Nairametrics reported that the last time our country recorded such a level of foreign liquidity was in 2021, 44 months ago.
The latest increase highlights improved foreign exchange inflows and strengthens the CBN’s capacity to stabilise the naira, manage liquidity, and defend against speculative pressure.
The build-up has been particularly strong in August, with reserves adding $1.46 billion month-to-date, rising from $39.54 billion on August 1 to $41.00 billion on August 19.
This represents a 3.69 percent growth in less than three weeks, averaging about $81 million per day. Reserves crossed the $40 billion threshold on August 7, advanced to $40.5 billion by August 12, and reached the $41 billion milestone just a week later.
Despite this surge, year-to-date performance shows only modest gains. Nigeria’s reserves stood at $40.88 billion at the end of December 2024, meaning the current level reflects an increase of about $124 million, or 0.30 percent, since the beginning of the year.
The bulk of the growth has come in the past five weeks, following a relatively subdued first half of 2025 when reserves fluctuated between $37 billion and $39 billion.
Reserves had dipped to as low as $37.28 billion in early July before the sharp turnaround that has since added more than $3 billion, equivalent to an 8 percent rise within a month.
