CBN hired Deloitte to investigate the forex claims in order to get a true picture things, Cardoso said.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) uncovered invalid foreign overdue claims totalling $2.4 billion, which have pressured the naira for long and spooked the currency market, Central Bank Governor Olayemi Cardoso said on Monday.
Mr Cardoso said the discovery was made after an audit by the consultant that the Central Bank engaged brought several shady deals to light.
After seven years of being concealed from public knowledge, the audited accounts of the CBN became public last year during which auditors revealed a $7 billion backlog of unmet dollar demand from investors and currency users.
That has created an overhang in the market which, unless cleared, could keep the naira pressured, leaving the currency on a continued free fall against the dollar.