E-Financial
FG Seeks Fresh $500m World Bank Loan for MSMEs
Federal government is seeking a fresh $500m loan from the World Bank to expand access to finance for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) across the country.
The proposed facility, titled Fostering Inclusive Finance for MSMEs in Nigeria (FINCLUDE) Project, aims to mobilise private capital and promote innovative financial products for small businesses.
According to a project document obtained from the World Bank, the loan will help deepen credit access through the Development Bank of Nigeria and its subsidiary, Impact Credit Guarantee Limited.
“The proposed FINCLUDE Project leverages the platforms of the Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN) and its subsidiary, the Impact Credit Guarantee Limited, to drive inclusive MSME finance,” the World Bank stated.
“Through these catalytic institutions, the project will deploy a package of complementary, inclusive, and innovative instruments tailored to the diverse needs of MSMEs in Nigeria.”
The total cost of the project is estimated at $2.39bn, out of which $500m will be financed by the World Bank. Of the amount, $400m will come from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and $100m from the International Development Association (IDA).
The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the International Development Association are the two main lending arms of the World Bank Group.
While the IBRD provides loans on near-market terms to middle-income and credit-worthy low-income countries, the IDA focuses on the world’s poorest nations by offering concessional financing and grants funded by donor contributions rather than commercial borrowing.
The remaining $1.89bn will be provided by commercial lenders as unguaranteed financing. The Federal Government will serve as the borrower, while the Development Bank of Nigeria will act as the implementing agency with overall responsibility for managing the funds.
The World Bank noted that “DBN is a partner well known to the World Bank with high implementation capacity and a proven track record in designing and executing complex, innovative projects.”
The project, which is expected to be approved on December 18, 2025, comprises three components: inclusive and innovative MSME finance products; de-risking and mobilising private capital through partial credit guarantees; and technical assistance for modernising and digitising the MSME finance ecosystem.
Under the first component, the World Bank said the project would provide Tier 2 subordinated capital to eligible financial institutions and support the establishment of an MSME investment fund to provide equity and long-term debt to small businesses.
The bank explained that the initiative would help “crowd-in private capital, test market innovations and promote financial sustainability” in Nigeria’s small business sector.
It said the project would also provide targeted technical assistance to strengthen the capacity of financial institutions, improve regulatory oversight, and modernise the MSME finance chain linking DBN, lenders, and entrepreneurs.
The World Bank appraisal report highlighted Nigeria’s ongoing economic reforms, describing the country as being “in a critical transition.” It said the removal of fuel and foreign exchange subsidies, along with the unification of exchange rates, had begun to stabilise the economy and restore investor confidence.
The report added, “These reforms have improved fiscal space, enhanced FX liquidity, and eased inflation to 18 per cent as of September 2025.
Growth prospects are strengthening, with the IMF projecting 3.9 per cent real GDP growth in 2025.”
Despite the reforms, the World Bank noted that access to finance remained uneven, particularly for small businesses, women, and agriculture.
It said agriculture accounted for just over five per cent of total bank credit in 2024, while high interest rates and limited credit penetration continued to constrain lending to smaller enterprises.
If approved, FINCLUDE will be the latest in a series of World Bank loans to Nigeria.
As of June 30, 2025, the country’s external debt stood at $46.98bn, according to figures from the Debt Management Office (DMO) .
The World Bank Group remains the country’s largest single creditor, accounting for $19.39bn, comprising $18.04bn from the IDA and $1.35bn from the IBRD.
This means the bank holds 41.3 per cent of Nigeria’s total external debt, underscoring its dominant role in financing the nation’s development programmes.
Debt Management Office (DMO) said the federal government spent N3.14 trillion on servicing its domestic debt in the first quarter of 2026.
The office disclosed the data in its latest domestic debt service report for Q1 2026.
The figure comprises N2.97 trillion in interest payments and N169.68 billion in principal repayments.
The agency said in January, the government spent N741.82 billion on domestic debt service, while the figure rose to N967.67 billion in February.
Debt service increased further to N1.43 trillion in March, bringing the total for the quarter to N3.14 trillion.
The March figure was 47.7 percent higher than the N967.67 billion recorded in February and 92.7 percent above the N741.82 billion spent in January.
Also, the debt office said interest payments accounted for about 94.6 percent of total domestic debt service during the quarter.
The DMO said treasury bills accounted for the largest share of interest payments at N1 trillion, while interest on federal government bonds stood at N1.96 trillion.
The agency said the government also paid N4.24 billion in interest on FGN savings bonds during the period.
The DMO said the principal component of the debt service comprised N169.68 billion in repayments on local-denominated promissory notes.
Overall, the government’s domestic debt service rose sharply through the quarter, with March accounting for almost half of the N3.14 trillion spent between January and March.
Nigeria’s public debt increased by 0.01 percent to N159.35 trillion in the Q1 of 2026.
Interswitch Group, an integrated digital payments and commerce company, together with global banking software provider, Temenos have reassured the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) of their commitment to advancing the modernisation of Nigeria’s financial services sector.
Interswitch and Temenos had earlier in June announced a strategic partnership across Africa which would see Interswitch leverage Temenos solutions – across core banking, digital banking, payments, wealth management and financial crime mitigation – to provide cloud-hosted and on-premises managed services to banks and financial institutions across Africa.
This will enable institutions to progressively transform their banking platform and evolve to more customer-centric business models. The service will initially support key African markets including Nigeria, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya and others.
The recent regulatory visit to CBN headquarters in Abuja, was led by the Founder and Group Chief Executive Officer of Interswitch, Mitchell Elegbe, and Managing Director for the Middle East and Africa (MEA) at Temenos, Santhosh Rao, as part of the ongoing efforts by both organisations to deepen collaboration with Central Banks across the African region on the future of digital banking infrastructure across Nigeria and key African markets.
Discussions centred on the strategic partnership between Interswitch and Temenos, and how it will enable Nigerian financial institutions to progressively modernise their core banking platforms and transition to more customer-centric business models.
The two organisations also explored opportunities to work with the CBN in charting new frontiers in Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) innovation, leveraging resilient financial networks and decentralised application platforms to support the issuance and management of CBDCs.
Commenting on the visit, Elegbesaid: “Our partnership as Interswitch with Temenos and our continued engagement with the Central Bank of Nigeria reflect a shared commitment to building banking infrastructure that is resilient, inclusive, and ready for the next phase of Africa’s financial evolution.
We are proud to be at the table as these conversations shape the future of digital banking technology and innovation across key Africa markets…”
The Bank of Industry, through BOI Financing SPV Plc, has opened subscriptions for its inaugural Series 1 Fixed Rate Bond worth up to N250bn under its $1bn multi-currency instruments programme, seeking to raise long-term capital to finance businesses across Nigeria’s priority sectors.
The offer, which opened on 5 August and closes on 11 August, is being arranged by Chapel Hill Denham as the lead issuing house. The five-year bond is priced within a yield range of 17.35 per cent to 17.50 per cent and will be listed on the FMDQ Securities Exchange.
According to the offer document, proceeds from the issuance will be deployed to finance eligible businesses and projects across sectors, including agriculture and food processing, healthcare, engineering and technology, renewable energy, petrochemicals, oil and gas, creative industries and solid minerals, in line with BOI’s development finance mandate.
The lender said the financing is expected to improve access to medium and long-term funding for Nigerian enterprises, expand productive capacity, create and preserve jobs, deepen local value addition, support import substitution, boost exports and strengthen domestic value chains.
BOI, Nigeria’s foremost development finance institution, said it has provided funding to more than one million businesses across the country and disbursed over N1.27tn between 2023 and 2025. The institution operates across 34 states and the Federal Capital Territory and is jointly owned by the Ministry of Finance Incorporated and the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The bank also highlighted its financial performance, reporting a 36 per cent compound annual growth rate in gross earnings between 2021 and 2025.
Interest income rose 64 per cent to N884bn in 2025 from N538bn in the previous year, while its capital adequacy ratio stood at 39 per cent, nearly four times the regulatory minimum of 10 per cent. Its non-performing loan ratio was 1.7 per cent, below the CBN’s prudential limit of five per cent.
The bond has been assigned AAA ratings by Agusto & Co. and Intelligence Africa, reflecting the issuer’s strong capitalization, profitability, liquidity and ownership structure.
The issuance is open to institutional and qualified investors with a minimum subscription of N5m and additional investments in multiples of N1m. Interest will be paid semi-annually at a fixed rate, while principal repayment will begin in the third year through equal semi-annual amortised instalments until maturity in 2031.
The bond is also exempt from tax, making it an attractive investment option for investors seeking stable returns amid expectations of declining interest rates.
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