Pricing in Foreign Currency Under Nigerian Law

A recent Federal High Court conviction has created concern among Nigerian businesses over the legality of pricing goods and services in U.S. Dollars. In F.R.N. v. ICE by CW and Aniogor Godswill Obiajulu, the court convicted a business owner for, amongst other things, pricing and accepting USD, raising concerns about whether foreign currency pricing is now criminalised.

This article authored by Partner, Godwin Omoaka, SAN, FCIArb, and Managing Counsel, Izuchukwu Ohajinwa, critiques the judgment, clarifying that under Nigerian law, quoting prices in foreign currency is not illegal unless a business outrightly refuses to accept Naira. It argues the ruling misinterprets both the CBN Act and the Money Laundering Act, and cautions that enforcing policy as law risks undermining contractual freedom and setting a dangerous precedent.

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