Nigerian financial institutions, including Zenith Bank Plc and First City Monument Bank (FCMB) Group, are actively working to comply with and exit regulatory forbearance arrangements imposed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). These measures, part of the CBN’s enhanced prudential directives issued on June 14, aim to strengthen capital buffers and ensure provisioning adequacy for forbearance exposure and single obligor limits (SOL).

Zenith Bank Plc has assured shareholders of its readiness to resume dividend payments by the end of June 2025, anticipating that it will meet all regulatory conditions set by the CBN by the close of the first half of the year. The bank affirmed its full compliance with the CBN’s temporary suspension of dividend payments, bonuses, and investments in foreign subsidiaries. Zenith Bank also announced that it has successfully raised and surpassed the apex bank’s new minimum capital requirement of ₦500 billion, well ahead of the March 2026 deadline set for the broader recapitalization program. The lender clarified that its exposure under the Single Obligor Limit forbearance relates to only one obligor, which it expects to bring within the regulatory threshold by June 30, 2025. Additionally, forbearance granted on other credit facilities applies to just two customers. Zenith Bank expressed confidence that it would exit all CBN forbearance arrangements by mid-2025 and satisfy all relevant conditions to enable dividend payments to shareholders in the current year.

First City Monument Bank (FCMB) Group is also making significant strides in its efforts to exit the regulatory forbearance regime. FCMB Group stated that it has made substantial progress in resolving legacy credit exposures and maintaining capital adequacy above regulatory thresholds. One of its key strategies to bring a debtor, currently under SOL forbearance, within regulatory limits is the conversion of a recently concluded N23.1 billion convertible loan into equity. This process, which has already received CBN approval for capital verification, is expected to be finalized by September 30, 2025. Furthermore, FCMB has managed to significantly reduce its banking subsidiary loans under CBN forbearance, decreasing them by N331.2 billion from N538.8 billion as of September 30, 2024, to N207.6 billion as of May 31, 2025. These loans are currently classified as Stage 2. While acknowledging that exiting the CBN forbearance regime might lead to an initial spike in Stage 3 loans to approximately 11.5% of the total loan book, the bank anticipates this figure will decline below 10% by the end of the financial year based on projected loan book growth. FCMB has reassured stakeholders of its capacity to maintain strong capital buffers and dividend payment capabilities, affirming its financial soundness and commitment to regulatory compliance.