Nigeria’s banking sector attracted $13.53 billion in foreign capital inflows in 2025, nearly doubling the $7.00 billion recorded the previous year, as lenders raced to meet a Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recapitalization deadline that falls today, Tuesday, March 31, 2026.
Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) capital importation report shows the banking sector remained the single largest destination for foreign capital, accounting for 58.26 percent of total inflows in 2025, up from 56.81 percent in 2024. Of the $10.90 billion increase in Nigeria’s overall capital importation, the banking sector alone contributed more than $6.53 billion, meaning well over half of the country’s total inflow growth was driven by lenders.
Inflows were sustained across all four quarters of 2025, beginning at $3.13 billion in the first quarter and rising through $3.41 billion, $3.14 billion, and $3.85 billion in successive quarters, a pattern that reflects phased capital-raising strategies rather than dependence on a single fundraising window.
The recapitalization exercise introduced minimum capital thresholds of N500 billion for international banks, N200 billion for national institutions, and N50 billion for regional lenders, the most sweeping revision of banking capital rules since 2005. As of the March 31 deadline, 34 banks have confirmed they have met the new requirements, with all major international licence holders, which together control more than 70 percent of industry assets, among those in compliance.
CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso disclosed that Nigerian banks collectively mobilized N4.61 trillion in fresh capital under the programme, with roughly 27 percent of that sum sourced from foreign investors. Cardoso described the progress as evidence that “the most challenging phase of macroeconomic adjustment is now behind us,” adding that the reforms had helped drive headline inflation down from 34.8 percent in December 2024 to 15.06 percent by February 2026.
Despite the headline surge in inflows, analysts have flagged a structural concern: foreign direct investment (FDI) accounted for just 3.97 percent of total capital importation in 2025, with portfolio inflows of $19.74 billion more than 21 times the size of FDI at $923.01 million. Analysts caution that some lenders may still pursue mergers, acquisitions, or licence downgrades if final compliance assessments reveal gaps as the deadline concludes.
