CBN cuts Nigerian Treasury Bills yield below 17%, lowest since June 3

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) allotted N865.71 billion at its Wednesday, September 2, 2026, Treasury Bills primary market auction, cutting the stop rate on the one-year bill to 16.84%, its lowest level since the June 3 auction, and the second straight rate cut.

The primary market auction results show that investors submitted a combined N3.35 trillion in bids against the N700 billion offered, while the CBN allotted N865.71 billion, roughly N165.71 billion above the original offer size.

The demand, as in previous primary market auctions, heavily concentrated on the 364-day bill, while the shorter tenors recorded notably weak interest, a divergence that has become a defining feature of Nigeria’s Treasury Bills market through much of 2026.

What the data is saying:

Combined, the auction drew total subscriptions of approximately N3.35 trillion against the N700 billion offer, a bid-to-offer ratio of about 4.8 times, with the CBN ultimately allotting N865.71 billion, roughly N165.71 billion above the original offer size.

• 91-day bill: N100 billion offered, N76.82 billion subscribed, only 76.8% of the offer covered. N76.28 billion allotted. Stop rate held at 16.30%.
• 182-day bill: N100 billion offered, just N33.51 billion subscribed, covering only 33.5% of the offer. N27.27 billion allotted. Stop rate held at 16.50%.
• 364-day bill: N500 billion offered, N3.238 trillion subscribed, roughly 6.48 times the offer size. N762.17 billion allotted, N262.17 billion above the advertised amount.

Stop rate fell 31 basis points to 16.84% from 17.15% at the August 26 auction.

Maturity dates for the three tenors are December 3, 2026 (91-day), March 4, 2027 (182-day), and September 2, 2027 (364-day).

The scale of demand concentration was stark: the 364-day bill alone accounted for approximately 96.7% of total subscriptions across all three tenors, drawing almost 29 times the combined N110.33 billion subscribed for the 91-day and 182-day bills together.

More insights: A second straight rate cut

Wednesday’s auction extends a fresh easing trend at the long end of the curve. The August 26 auction had already cut the 364-day stop rate by 44 basis points, from 17.59% to 17.15%.

• With Wednesday’s further 31-basis-point reduction, the one-year NTB stop rate has now fallen a combined 75 basis points across two consecutive auctions, from 17.59% to 16.84%, even as demand at each auction remained exceptionally strong. This marks a notable reversal from the trajectory seen through much of July and August.
• The 364-day stop rate had climbed steadily from 16.35% at the June 3 auction to 17.34% at the June 17 auction, the first major hike of the year, before rising further to 17.70% at the July 8 auction.
• It was elevated through most of July and August, briefly touching 17.59% at the August 12 auction despite the banking system being flush with liquidity following a reported N2.48 trillion OMO repayment on August 11 alone.
• Wednesday’s 16.84% print represents the lowest 364-day stop rate recorded since the June 3 auction, when the rate stood at 16.35%, signalling a meaningful shift in the CBN’s approach to long-tenor pricing even as investor appetite for the instrument has, if anything, intensified.
• What this suggests is that the apex bank is beginning to use strong demand to lower its borrowing cost, allotting far above the advertised offer while still cutting the rate, in line with analysts’ expectations reported by Nairametrics.

For investors, the 364-day bill’s 16.84% yield still represents an attractive return relative to the shorter tenors, even with the lower stop rate.

The auction’s stop rate of 16.84% also sat 10 basis points above the prevailing secondary-market rate of 16.74%, unlike the shorter tenors, where stop rates cleared meaningfully below secondary-market levels, 16.30% against 17.79% for the 91-day, and 16.50% against 17.38% for the 182-day.

What you should know:

The 364-day bill has now dominated demand at every major NTB auction since June, reflecting sustained investor preference for locking in yields over a full year even as short-tenor appetite remains conspicuously weak.

• Nairametrics reported that at the August 12 auction, the CBN raised the stop rate to 17.59% despite N4.4 trillion in total bids against a N700 billion offer, using the auction as an additional liquidity sterilisation tool at a time when the banking system was awash with cash from OMO repayments.
• Cumulative sterilisation through 2026 has been substantial: the CBN mopped up N7.2 trillion through OMO sales in July alone, pushing total 2026 OMO sterilisation past N50 trillion.

With rates now easing for a second straight auction, analysts’ earlier expectations of a first CBN rate cut at the September Monetary Policy Committee meeting appear increasingly plausible.

Wednesday’s auction result may be read as an early signal of where the broader interest rate environment is heading into that decision.