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.
First HoldCo reported N288.9 billion in impairments, a 68.6% increase from N171.4 billion the previous year, largely due to revaluation of legacy exposures and macro-sensitive loans in energy and trade sectors.
Nonetheless, the impact was partly offset by higher interest income and strong non-interest revenues in the period under review.
Included in the provisioning for the period under review is about N100 billion, which it incurred in the third quarter of 2025, suggesting a more aggressive write-down in line with the central bank’s sunset of forbearance for the banking sector.
FirstHoldCo had stated that the increase in impairment charges was to allow them “further strengthen the balance sheet to cover unresolved forborne loans”.
It also mentioned that included in its priorities was the need to “achieve full resolution of forbearance loans by financial year end 2025”.
