Business
MFBs Operators Expects Low Lending Rate
Some operators of microfinance banks last Thursday expressed optimism that lending rates in the sub-sector would drop in 2013.
They said that lending rates in the sub-sector would drop as soon as operators were able to access the Micro Small and Medium scale Enterprise Development Fund of CBN in 2013. Managing Director, Olive Microfinance Bank, Mr Eniola Agbesoyin, told newsmen in Lagos that the CBN had released N220 billion from the fund to assist the microfinance sub-sector.
Agbesoyin said that the fund was launched on October 23, 2012, but was yet to be accessed by microfinance banks.
He said that the fund would reduce the lending rate in the sub-sector as its interest rates ranged between three and eight per cent. “Funds from the CBN always come with cheaper interest rates.
Once the fund effectively takes-off, it will affect the current lending rates in microfinance banks because it will attract minimal interest rate from the apex bank,” he said.
Agbesoyin said that microfinance banks were created to assist the poor to grow their businesses, but that funding had been the major challenge.
He commended the CBN for the intervention fund, stressing that it would enable them serve the poor better. Mr Valentine Whensu, the Chairman, National Association of Microfinance Banks in Lagos State, said that the apex bank had not released guidelines on the disbursement of the fund. “Though we will access the fund, I don’t know the modalities yet.
Again the fund is also meant for cooperative societies.
“However, it will improve business activities in the microfinance sub-sector when it is finally accessed,” Whensu said.
Mr Johnson Ehikhamhen, the General Secretary, NAMB, Lagos State Chapter, said that the interest rates would also depend on the capitalisation and customer-base of each bank. Ehikhamhen said that the injection of the fund would give customers a sigh of relief because it would bring down the lending rates.
The Chief Executive Officer, MoneyWise Microfinance Bank, Mr Dele Oyekanmi, urged the government to give more support to the sub-sector. Oyekanmi said that the sub-sector was the best vehicle to reach out to the poor.
“Payment of tuition fees for undergraduate/postgraduate studies shall be subject to a maximum limit of $25,000.00 per semester,” the Manual states.
The expansion of international card limits also reflects growing confidence among lenders that foreign exchange liquidity has improved enough to support retail dollar transactions.
Speaking recently at the BusinessDay 14th Annual CEO Forum in Lagos, CBN Olayemi Cardoso, governor of the CBN said buying and selling activities now increasingly determine outcomes in the foreign exchange market, unlike in the past when market participants relied heavily on routine Central Bank interventions.
According to Cardoso, Nigeria’s net foreign exchange reserves have risen from just over $3 billion at the start of the reform programme to more than $40 billion, while gross reserves have climbed to about $52 billion, providing stronger confidence for investors and enabling the Central Bank to reserve interventions for periods of market stress rather than day-to-day liquidity management.
The restoration and expansion of international naira card spending limits are increasingly being seen as one of the clearest signs that the benefits of the CBN’s foreign exchange reforms are beginning to reach households, students and businesses making legitimate cross-border payments.
The Secretary-General and Chief Executive Officer, WEC, Dr Angela Wilkinson, disclosed this in a statement, last Thursday.
“Nigeria’s participation comes at a pivotal time as the country seeks to expand energy access, strengthen energy security, accelerate gas development and mobilise the capital required for industrialisation and sustainable economic growth.
“WEC Nigeria will convene leaders from across the energy ecosystem, apply the WEC’s globally recognised Energy Trilemma framework to Nigeria’s unique context, and promote evidence-based dialogue, practical collaboration and informed policymaking.
“It will also ensure that Nigerian and broader African perspectives contribute meaningfully to global energy conversations,” she said.
Wilkinson expressed confidence that Nigeria would play a significant leadership role at the World Energy Congress scheduled for Riyadh in April 2027 and beyond.
The statement also quoted the Chairman of WEC Nigeria, Isa, as describing the country’s participation as an opportunity to deepen national and African leadership within the global energy community through practical solutions tailored to regional development priorities.
He said the platform would promote collaboration across sectors and attract sustainable investments into Nigeria’s energy sector.
The Chief Executive Officer of WEC Nigeria, Wunti, was quoted in the statement as saying that the council would connect leadership, evidence and investment to build a secure, affordable and sustainable energy system.
“This system will be capable of driving economic growth and shared prosperity.”
According to him, the platform will also connect Nigerian institutions and businesses with international knowledge, technology, partnerships and investment opportunities through the World Energy Council’s global network.
Recall that WEC, founded in 1923, is the world’s oldest independent and impartial community of energy leaders and practitioners, advancing informed, collaborative and practical action across the global energy system.