There is an interesting Bible passage that is very useful to help you understand the Dollar Exchange Rate in Nigeria.
“Remember Lots Wife.”
For those who don’t know the story, when God was about to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, he told Lot to get his family, pack their things, and get out.
But on their way out of Sodom, Lots wife wanted to go back to get something and as soon as she turned around she turned into a pillar of salt and is stuck there till today.
What’s the relevance of this story?
It’s simple. When things change, DONT LOOK BACK.
And this is a very important lesson in exchange rate changes and forex transactions.
Earlier this year we announced in the group that people should buy dollars. As of then it was N360 to $1.
Since then I have been hesitant to recommend any other investment simply because when things are trending downwards your first duty is to ensure that you can maintain a flatline rather than trying to make it go up.
What does that mean? It means that if you put money into an investment to earn 20% per annum and your money itself just lost 20% value, you will be spending 1 year to regain what you lose in 1 month.
So it’s better to simply protect yourself from the devaluation rather than thinking about how to make money at that time. I stressed this point at every online speaking event I was invited to during this period.
But more importantly, even if you didn’t act in time; DO NOT LOOK BACK. Learn the lesson and move on. Otherwise, If you look back you will be frozen in regret, disappointment, and bitterness, quite like a pillar of salt.
NB:
Please understand this- nobody knows the future. Even President Buhari cannot tell you what the black market exchange rate will be tomorrow.
Before the lockdown, dollar was already trading at N415. Someone asked me if they should buy at that price and I said very simply- “I cannot see anything that will make the price go down; only up”.
The person bought and kept. Now it’s at N450.
Nobody could see the glut in the oil market coming or the economic impact of Covid-19 on the oil market.
So, should you buy a Dollar today?
It’s generally a good idea to hold dollars until the end of Covid-19 and normalcy returns. I cannot say what the exchange rate will be, but I can say that so far I can’t see anything that will make it turn around.
What I can say to you is- do not look back. If you need to carry out a dollar transaction, the only rate you know is today’s rate. Yesterday’s rate is of no use to you.
If you sit down looking back, you will be stuck in time wishing for things to go backward, meanwhile, who knows things may just get worse.
Move on- Don’t look back.
Remember Lots wife. Luke 17:32
Written by:
Teniola Esan,
Lawyer | Writer | Entrepreneur
