Nigeria’s largest banks set aside a combined N1.96 trillion in the first nine months of 2025 as impairment charges to cover potential loan losses.
This represents a sharp increase from about N1.32 trillion (up 49%) in the same period of 2024.
Crucially, this surge in provisioning comes as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) begins unwinding its pandemic-era forbearance measures, regulatory relief that previously allowed banks to restructure exposures and delay the classification of non-performing loans.
The apex bank has since flagged banks still under forbearance for “close supervisory engagement.”
Under the revised framework, banks that continue to benefit from forbearance are restricted from paying dividends, issuing executive bonuses, or expanding offshore operations, while those that have met the minimum requirements are transitioning out.
Ahead of the full unwind in March 2026, the CBN disclosed that at least eight banks have already met the requisite forbearance-related standards, signaling an improving regulatory stance.
Against this backdrop, Nairametrics reviewed the financial statements of Nigeria’s top listed banks to determine those with the largest impairment charges so far in 2025.
Below is the ranking of the eight banks with the biggest loan-loss provisions as of Q3 2025.
Stanbic reported a sharp decline in impairments to N11.6 billion (–80% YoY), owing to improved loan recoveries and minimal credit deterioration.
According to information contained in the bank’s half-year earnings release, “Credit impairment charges drop was driven by recoveries on previously written-off facilities and provision releases following repayments on impaired loans”.
The bank recorded about N16.3 billion in various write-backs in the period under review as it recovered previously provisioned loans. This helped reduce its impairments to N11.6 billion.
Stanbic IBTC stated that its NPL ratio was 4.75% as of the second half of the year, down from 4.2% at the end of 2024. The bank reported a total loans and advances of N2.63 trillion as of September 2025.
