President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the World Bank have challenged Nigerian banks to redirect more capital from government securities to productive businesses as the government’s economic reforms seek to lower borrowing costs, stimulate investment and create jobs.
Tinubu said the banking industry must move beyond balance-sheet expansion and profitability by deploying capital to businesses capable of driving investment, production and economic growth.
The president spoke yesterday at the opening of the 19th annual banking and finance conference of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) in Abuja, with the theme, “Building a Resilient Economy in an Era of Disruptions: Strategic Imperatives for the Banking and Financial Services Industry.”
Represented by Taiwo Oyedele, minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Tinubu said improving macroeconomic stability should not be mistaken for prosperity, stressing that the ultimate objective of the reforms was to translate stability into investment, production, jobs and improved living standards.
He said banks must increasingly measure their contribution to the economy by what their capital enables businesses to achieve rather than only by balance-sheet growth and shareholder returns.
