The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has extended the deadline for compliance with the capital requirements for Microfinance Banks (MFBs) by one year.
This is as a result of the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on the economy. The CBN stated this in a circular to all Microfinance banks dated April 29, 2020 and signed by Kevin Amugo, director, financial policy and regulation department.
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Consequently, MFBs operating in rural, unbanked and underbanked areas (tier2) are expected to meet the N35 million capital threshold by April 2021 and N200 million by 2022.
MFBs operating in urban and high density banked areas (tier1) are expected to meet the N100 million capital threshold by April 2021 and N200 million by April 2022.
State MFBs are to increase their capital by N500 million by April 2021 and N1 billion by April 2022, while National MFBs are expected to meet minimum capital of N3.5 billion by April 2021 and N5 billion by 2022.
Hope Moses-Ashike
Hope Moses-Ashike is an Associate Editor, Banking and Finance, with more than a decade of experience reporting on Nigeria’s financial system and broader economy. She closely tracks market movements, monetary policy decisions, company disclosures, regulatory actions, economic indicators, and global developments, and interprets what they mean for businesses, investors, policymakers, and households. Her reporting helps readers understand complex issues such as inflation trends, foreign exchange market dynamics, interest rate decisions, bank performance, and investment risks.
She also covers major international events and periodically travels to Washington, D.C., to report on the World Bank/IMF Spring and Annual Meetings.
Her dedication to financial journalism has earned her multiple recognitions and invitations to high-level professional development programmes. She is an alumna of the International Visitors Leadership Programme (IVLP) in the United States and holds an Advanced Financial Journalism Certificate from the Press Association Training in London, UK. Her other notable achievements include completing the Lagos Business School CMC Programme, the Bloomberg Media Africa Initiative Programme, and a Master Class in Journalism at Rhodes University in South Africa.
