Days after urging Nigerian banks to expedite action on the recapitalisation of their capital base in order to strengthen the nation’s financial system, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on Thursday, unveiled new minimum capital requirements for banks, pegging the minimum capital base for commercial banks with international authorisation at N500 billion.
The central bank, in a statement, said the new minimum capital base for commercial banks with national authorisation is now N200billion, while the new requirement for those with regional authorization is N50billion.
Acting director, corporate communications department of the CBN, Mrs Hakama Ali, in the statement also disclosed that the new minimum capital for merchant banks would be N50billion, while the new requirements for non-interest banks with national and regional authorisations are N20billion and N10billion, respectively.
She quoted a circular signed by the director, financial policy and regulation department of the apex bank, Mr. Haruna Mustafa, to all commercial, merchant, and non-interest banks and promoters of proposed banks as emphasising that all banks are required to meet the minimum capital requirement within 24 months commencing from April 1, 2024, and terminating on March 31, 2026.
According to the circular, the move, initially disclosed by the CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, in his address to the annual bankers’ dinner in November 2023, was to enhance banks’ resilience, solvency, and capacity to continue supporting the growth of the Nigerian economy.
To enable them to meet the minimum capital requirements, the CBN urged banks to consider inject fresh equity capital through private placements, rights issues and/or offers for subscription; Mergers and Acquisitions (M&As); and/or upgrade or downgrade of license authorisation.
Credit: Leadership
Nwabufo Michael
March 29, 2024 at 6:36 amThis makes the Naira appear totally worthless.