CBN increased capital base for commercial banks

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has raised the capital base for commercial banks with international authorisation to N500bn and national banks to N200bn.

CBN confirmed this on Thursday, in a statement signed by its Acting Director, Corporate Communications, Sidi Ali.

The apex bank’s move mandates substantial increases in the minimum capital base for banks, varying by the scope of their operations.

The latest policy directive specifies that commercial banks with international authorisation are now required to shore up their capital base to N500bn.

She added that national authorisation commercial banks need to meet an N200bn threshold, while those with regional authorisation are expected to achieve an N50bn capital floor.

In a bid to tighten the financial fabric, the CBN has not overlooked merchant banks, which are now subject to an N50bn minimum capital requirement

Sidi added that non-interest banks with national and regional authorisation will need to increase their capital to N20bn and N10bn respectively.