The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Yemi Cardoso, announced on Tuesday in Abuja that 14 Nigerian banks have fully met the new capital requirement in the ongoing recapitalisation exercise.
He made the statement while presenting a communiqué from the 302nd meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC).
The CBN recently introduced a new minimum capital base for banks, with requirements tiered by license type.
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This is the first major recapitalisation since 2004, when the minimum capital was raised from N2 billion to N25 billion, which led to the consolidation of the banking sector from 89 to 25 institutions.
The new requirements mandate that commercial banks with international authorisation now have a new capital requirement of N500 billion, while those with national and regional authorisations need N200 billion and N50 billion respectively.
The requirement for merchant banks is N50 billion, non-interest national banks need N20 billion, and non-interest regional banks need N10 billion.
According to Cardoso, the MPC “acknowledged the significant progress and urged the CBN to continue the implementation of policies and initiatives that would ensure the successful completion of the ongoing recapitalisation exercise.
The committee also noted the successful termination of forbearance measures and waivers on single obligors, which has helped promote transparency, risk management, and long-term financial stability.
The MPC reassured the public that the impact of the removal of forbearance is transitory and does not pose any threat to the soundness and stability of the banking system, price, and other domestic developments.
Cardoso also announced that the MPC decided to reduce the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) by 50 basis points to 27 per cent from 27.50 per cent.
The committee also adjusted the standing facilities corridor around the MPR to +250/- 250 basis points and adjusted the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) for commercial banks to 45 per cent from 50 per cent.
The CRR for merchant banks was “retained at 16 per cent,” and the “Liquidity Ratio” was kept “unchanged at 30 per cent.”
A new 75 per cent CRR on non-TSA public sector deposits was introduced to improve liquidity management.
The committee’s decision to lower the MPR was based on “sustained disinflation” over the past five months and projections of declining inflation for the rest of 2025, as well as the need to support economic recovery efforts.
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