Assets of the country’s banking industry grew by12.68% to N17.98 trillion in January 2025, a member of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), Mr. Bandele Amoo, has said, citing data by the apex bank staff.

He disclosed this in his personal statement at the committee’s meeting held in February, which the CBN posted on its website, along with personal statements of other members of the MPC, on Tuesday.

Mr Amoo stated: “The Nigerian Financial system continues to be resilient and strong. Banking industry assets grew by12.68 per cent to N17.98 trillion in January 2025.

Industry credit and deposits increased by N0.59 trillion and N11.05 trillion, respectively as of January 2025 compared with their levels in the preceding year.

Bank liquidity remained adequate in January 2025, reflected by a high ratio of liquid assets to third-party funds at 50.6 per cent.

“The Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) declined to 14.8 per cent in January 2025 from 15.2 per cent in December 2024, thereby exposing banks to more risk-weighted assets and under supporting credit growth, even as interest margin to total operating income rose by 8%.

Meanwhile, nonperforming loans (NPL), as a proxy of credit risk, stood at 4.2 per cent in January 2025.” He further said: “The financial soundness indicators (FSI) trend for other financial institutions also showed strong safety levels.

Their savings and domiciliary deposits fell by N0.17 trillion (0.80%) and N 0.96 trillion (2.40%) respectively, in January 2025.

“These Fintech-driven MFBs have played a key role in advancing the nation’s financial inclusion drive and the growth of the MFB subsector.

Through technological innovation and the use of data analytics, these MFBs have enabled faster and more efficient delivery of financial services to the underbanked and unbanked.

“The latest stress tests indicate banking industry resilience against various risks, supported by efficient macro-prudential framework.

Moving forward, the CBN should continue strengthening synergy with other regulatory entities in the financial sector to mitigate risks that could potentially disrupt financial system stability.”

However, also commenting on the banking industry in his personal statement, Mustapha Akinkunmi, highlighted the sharp decline in total deposits.

He stated: “The naira continues to appreciate in a stable manner amidst declining deposits in the banking sector. The drop of over N2 trillion in total deposits suggests a substantial reduction in available liquidity in the banking system.”