It has been revealed that the aggregate Non-Performing Loans of nine banks increased to N814.08bn in 2021.
This rise represents a 3.16 percent increase from the N789.14bn reported in 2020, according to findings by The PUNCH.
The nine banks are Access Holdings Plc, Zenith Bank Plc, Wema Bank Plc, FCMB Group, Union Bank of Nigeria Plc, and Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc.
Others are Guaranty Trust Holding Plc, United Bank for Africa Plc, and Ecobank Nigeria.
Nevertheless, with the banking sector’s NPL ratio closing in 2021 at 4.85 percent, some of the nine banks remained within the five percent NPL ratio stipulated by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Additional findings also show that while some of the banks recorded an increase in their NPLs during the period under review, a number of them recorded a significant decline in their NPLs.
According to analysts, the NPL ratios in the banking sector remained stable in 2021, following the CBN’s forbearance for restructuring loan exposure to critical sectors.
