A report by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has shown that commercial banks gave N4.09 trillion more loans to businesses last year.
The report said the banks granted a total of N24.57 trillion credit to the manufacturing, general commerce and oil and gas sectors in 2021.
The amount granted in the preceding year was N20.48 trillion only.
The apex bank attributed the growth in bank credit to the Loan to Deposit Ratio policy of the CBN.
However, it said credit was increasingly becoming more expensive in the economy.
The CBN stress test results also showed the resilience of banks’ solvency and liquidity ratios in response to potential severe macroeconomic shocks while there are calls for review of external debts given the foreign exchange implications of external debt servicing.
A member of the CBN-led Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), Prof. Festus Adenikinju, said the banking system stability review report showed that the “banking system remains safe, sound, and resilient”.
