The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed 7 major banks to suspend dividend payouts, executive bonuses, and foreign investments due to regulatory forbearance.
Here’s what’s happening and why it matters Affected banks include:
•Zenith Bank
•Access Bank
•GTCO
•UBA
•FBN Holdings
•FCMB
•Fidelity Bank
These banks are operating under regulatory forbearance, meaning the CBN is temporarily allowing them to operate despite not fully meeting capital adequacy standards.
Until the CBN can independently verify their capital adequacy, these banks must pause:
•💸 Dividend payments
•🎁 Executive bonuses
•🌍 Foreign subsidiary investments
According to Renaissance Capital Africa, these 7 banks owe a combined $4.01 billion in forbearance loans.
Breakdown by bank:
•Access Bank – $535M
•FBN Holdings – $848M
•FCMB – $332M
•Fidelity – $556M
•GTCO – $60M
•UBA – $771M
•Zenith – $910M
CBN plans to gradually phase out this regulatory forbearance. Why?
To:
•Reinforce capital buffers
•Improve balance sheet resilience
•Ensure long-term financial stability in the banking sector
“This supervisory measure ensures banks retain resources to meet obligations and maintain strong prudential positions.” — Olubukola Akinwunmi, CBN
This move aligns with Nigeria’s ongoing bank recapitalisation drive, with new capital thresholds to be phased in up till 2026.
What this means for investors:
•Expect dividend suspensions from affected banks
•Capital buffers are being prioritized over short-term payouts
•Bank stock performance may shift as new capital rules evolve
Understanding regulatory forbearance is key — it’s not a punishment, but a pause to allow banks to recover & stabilize.
