Finance Nigeria discusses of a financing gap that was identified in the Nigerian economy within the middle tier of the financial system, particularly among the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises segment. Micro,Small,Medium Enterprises segment are the drivers of job creation and economic growth, and the lack of access to finance is one of the biggest hurdles MSMEs face in Nigeria, which prevents them from developing, and creating jobs and opportunities.
Finance Nigeria also explains how the Central Bank of Nigeria issues the national currency, the naira, which has been devalued several times since 1980. The Central Bank has branches in all the state capitals and provides guidelines to all commercial and merchant banks in the country. In 1976 all foreign banks were compelled to sell 60 percent of their shares to Nigerians. Banks proliferated in the 1980s, after the financial sector was liberalized. Many of these banks proved unstable, however, and in 1995 the government was forced to rescue some of them. Soon after, the government began privatizing banks and closing those that had violated banking regulations. By the beginning of the 21st century, the country had some 100 banks and financial institutions, and branch locations were widespread.The Central Bank of Nigeria Revised Guidelines for Finance Companies in Nigeria, 2014 (the “Guidelines”) addressed the issues identified in the 2002 Guidelines. It allowed a Finance Company to provide a wider range of services, which includes consumer loans, project finance, asset finance, loan syndication, debt securitization and covered bonds among other services. The current Guidelines was also extensively aimed at corporate governance and risk management within a Finance Company, whereas the 2002 Guidelines only made provision for internal control measures in the company.