Nigeria’s apex bank, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), has disclosed that the total assets and liabilities of commercial banks in the country amounted to N41.42 trillion as at October ending.
The information, which can be found on page nine of the CBN economic report for November, further noted that the N41.42 trillion is indicative of a 4.6% increase when compared to the amounted recorded in September this year.
Further comparison by Nairametrics disclosed that the current amount represents a 14.4% increase when compared to the N36.2 trillion that we reported was recorded during the comparable period in 2018.
In the meantime, the money has mostly been used by the commercial banks to boost their reserves, purchase foreign assets, and acquire unclassified assets.
“Total assets and liabilities of commercial banks amounted to N41,425.1 billion at end-October 2019, showing 4.6 per cent increase, compared with the level at the end of the preceding month. Funds were sourced, mainly, from increase in unclassified liabilities, and the mobilisation of time, savings and foreign currency deposits. The funds were used, mainly, to acquire unclassified assets, foreign assets and to boost reserves.”
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Further details: Note that the report also disclosed that Nigerian commercial banks recorded a total specified liquid asset of N14.2 billion as at October ending. This amount represents some 59.3% of the banks’ total current liabilities.
What this means, therefore, is that the liquidity ratio was 0.9% lower than what obtained in September, even though it was 29.30% higher than the stipulated minimum liquidity ratio of 30%.
However, the loan to deposit ratio (which stood at 61.9%), was 0.3% point below the level it stood during the preceding month.
Meanwhile, the banks’ lending to the real sector was said to have risen by a mere 0.6% to N22.2 billion during the period.
