Abuja, Feb. 24, 2026 – The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reduced the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) to 26. 5 per cent from 27 percent.
The MPR is the nominal anchor for bank’s lending rates. It is the rate at which banks determine their lending rate.
Olayemi Cardoso, the Governor of the apex bank, announced this on Tuesday at the end of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the bank.
He said members of the committee unanimously voted to reduce the rate by 50 basis points from 27 percent to 26.5 percent in view of the downward trend of inflation in the country.
Cardoso said the committee retained the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) at 45 percent for DMBs and 16 percent for merchant banks respectively and 75% for Non-TSA public sector deposits,
He said the Liquidity Ratio was also retained at 30 percent and the asymmetric corridor retained by +50/-450 basis points around the MPR.
“The committee’s decision was premised on a balanced evaluation of risks to the outlook, which suggests that the ongoing disinflation trajectory would continue.
“The sustained deceleration in year-on-year headline inflation in January 2026 marks the 11th consecutive month of decline,” he said.
Cardoso said the committee believes that the downward trend of inflation will continue due to foreign exchange rate stability and improved food supply.
He, however, said that increased fiscal injection during the electioneering period could pose some risks to the inflation in the near future.
