The Nigerian Senate on Wednesday confirmed Lamido Abubakar Yuguda as Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), following a swift screening process in Abuja.
The confirmation took place during plenary after lawmakers considered a report by the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions, which cleared the nominee after a brief screening exercise.
The committee, chaired by Adetokunbo Abiru, said Yuguda met the requirements for the role and had no petitions against him.
Yuguda, a former Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), was earlier appointed as Deputy Governor of the CBN by President Bola Tinubu on March 11.
What they are saying
During the screening, Yuguda was not subjected to detailed questioning, as senators invoked their informal ‘take a bow and go’ tradition for nominees deemed familiar to the chamber.
The move followed a motion by Osita Izunaso, who called for the suspension of questioning after Abiru indicated interest in probing the nominee on monetary and fiscal policy issues. Izunaso argued that Yuguda had been previously screened multiple times for senior public roles.
- “Mr Chairman and Distinguished colleagues, in line with our tradition, the nominee before us for the position of Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, is well known to us, having screened him three different times in the past for some other very important positions like Director General of Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and member of the monetary control of CBN,” Izunaso said.
The motion was seconded by Sarafadeen Alli.
Following the committee’s recommendation, the motion for Yuguda’s confirmation was moved by Danjuma Goje and seconded by fellow lawmakers before Senate President Godswill Akpabio put it to a voice vote, with the chamber overwhelmingly approving the nomination.
Akpabio subsequently described Yuguda as “a square peg in a square hole,” commending President Tinubu for what he called a fitting appointment.
Get up to speed
Yuguda’s confirmation comes weeks after his appointment was announced by the presidency.
- According to a statement by presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga, the nomination aligns with Section 8(1) of the CBN Act, 2007, which requires that the apex bank’s leadership possess relevant financial expertise.
- His nomination follows the redeployment of former Deputy Governor Bala Bello, who was appointed Special Adviser to the President on Political Economy.
In recent months, Nigeria’s monetary authorities have undergone a series of leadership adjustments as policymakers seek to stabilise inflation, manage exchange rate volatility, and restore investor confidence in the financial system.
What you should know
Yuguda brings decades of experience across Nigeria’s financial system and international institutions.
- He served as Director-General of the SEC between 2020 and 2024, overseeing capital market reforms during a period of heightened retail investor participation and regulatory tightening.
- A graduate of Ahmadu Bello University, where he earned a degree in Accountancy in 1983, Yuguda later obtained a master’s degree in Money, Banking and Finance from the University of Birmingham in 1991.
- He is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) and a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).
Yuguda began his career at the CBN in 1984 as a Senior Supervisor in the Foreign Operations Department. He later worked at the International Monetary Fund between 1997 and 2001 before returning to the apex bank, where he rose to become Director of the Reserve Management Department. He retired from the CBN in 2016.
