The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has officially announced new minimum capital base for commercial banks.
Mrs Hakama Sidi-Ali, CBN’s Acting Director Corporate Communications disclosed this in a statement in Abuja.
She said the new minimum capital base for commercial banks with international authorisation will now be N500 billion.
The statement further stated that all commercial, merchant, and non-interest banks and promoters of proposed banks are required to meet the minimum capital requirement within 24 months commencing from April 1, 2024, and terminating on March 31, 2026.
The new minimum capital base for commercial banks with national authorisation is now ₦200 billion, while the new requirement for those with regional authorisation is ₦50 billion.
The apex bank also revealed that the new minimum capital for merchant banks would be ₦50 billion, while the new requirements for non-interest banks with national and regional authorisations are ₦20 billion and ₦10 billion, respectively.
Meanwhile, the new minimum capital requirements for banks marks a turning point in the banking history in Nigeria.
However, this development comes after CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, urged deposit money banks to speed up action on the recapitalisation of their capital base in order to strengthen the financial system.
The last time the CBN increased capital base for banks was in 2005, when the current governor of Anambra State, Charles Soludo, was the CBN chief.
Capital base was raised from ₦2bn to ₦25bn.