The National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) has announced a USD 500 million special foreign exchange auction, marking the largest single FX injection since the central bank began auctioning dollars under its post-reform framework. This move signals an escalation in NBE’s efforts to combat persistent FX shortages amid high import demands.
The auction, set for Tuesday, January 27, 2026, is intended for monetary policy purposes and supplements NBE’s ongoing FX management efforts. It follows the 15th regular biweekly auction on January 20, 2026, where USD 70 million was allocated at a weighted average rate of 154.92 Birr per dollar, with bids totaling USD 94.7 million from 21 banks, highlighting continued unmet demand.
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As per the official notice, interested banks are invited to submit their bids in line with the specified guidelines. The auction amount is fixed at USD 500 million—more than seven times the size of regular biweekly auctions—with bids to be submitted between 10:00 AM and 12:00 NOON on the auction date. Results will be announced at 3:00 PM, and settlement will occur by the end of the day, January 27.
The auction will be conducted electronically via fxauction@nbe.gov.et, ensuring a streamlined process for participating institutions.
Since mid-2024, NBE has injected over USD 1.2 billion through more than 15 regular auctions and an additional USD 300 million in specials, including the USD 150 million year-end intervention in December 2025. The latest USD 500 million auction represents about 7% of Ethiopia’s USD 18.04 billion import bill for 2025, underscoring its role in alleviating pressures while import substitution initiatives, such as local wheat and fertilizer production, have already reduced the bill by USD 500 million last year.
This latest FX release signals NBE’s continued effort to manage liquidity conditions and support stability in the foreign exchange market as the year closes.
