The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reduced the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) from 26.5 per cent to 23 per cent.
CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, announced the decision on Tuesday after the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) concluded its 307th meeting in Abuja.
The latest decision represents a 350-basis-point reduction in the benchmark interest rate.
According to Cardoso, the committee reviewed developments in the domestic and global economies, emerging risks and the outlook before reaching its decision.
“The Committee decided as follows: reset the monetary policy rate to 23 per cent,” the CBN governor said.
The MPC also recalibrated the Standing Facilities Corridor to +50/-300 basis points around the MPR.
However, the committee retained the Cash Reserve Requirement (CRR) at 45 per cent for deposit money banks, 16 per cent for merchant banks, and 75 per cent for non-TSA public sector deposits.
The rate cut comes after the MPC kept the MPR unchanged at 26.5 per cent at its two previous meetings. It follows a 50-basis-point reduction announced in February 2026.Cardoso said the adjustment was aimed at strengthening monetary policy transmission and restoring the MPR as the key signal of monetary policy.
He added that the recalibration of the policy corridor should not be interpreted as a change in the underlying monetary policy stance, but as an operational adjustment to improve the effectiveness of monetary policy and support the transition towards an inflation-targeting framework.
The reduction in the benchmark rate could influence borrowing and lending conditions across the financial system, although commercial banks may not immediately reduce their lending rates by the same margin. The impact will depend on factors including banks’ funding costs, liquidity and credit risks.
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