12.07.2023 - 15:26 UTCEthiopian Airlines (ET, Addis Ababa) will gain access to unrepatriated hard currency earnings withheld in Nigeria after the central banks of Ethiopia and Nigeria agreed to swap USD100 million in blocked funds, reports The Reporter newspaper. The swap enables Ethiopia to access funds blocked in Nigerian banks, including large amounts owed to Ethiopian Airlines, while Nigeria gains access to money held up in Ethiopia through Dangote Cement. Ethiopian Airlines reportedly exchanged USD100 million of USD180 million in blocked funds in Nigeria for Ethiopian birr from Dangote Cement. “The National Bank will pay us the equivalent swapped amount in birr,” Ethiopian Airlines Chief Executive Officer Mesfin Tassew told The Reporter, adding there were no plans to swap the remaining amount. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has warned that rapidly rising levels of blocked funds...

Source: Ethiopian News July 20, 2023 11:28 UTC