{
  "id": 19907981,
  "title": "S&P: Nigerian Banks Prioritise Government Securities Over Private-sector Lending",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/14/s-p-nigerian-banks-prioritise-government-securities-over-private",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-11-14T02:31:04.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "This Day",
    "slug": "this-day",
    "url": "https://www.thisdaylive.com/2026/11/14/sp-nigerian-banks-prioritise-government-securities-over-private-sector-lending/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Nigerian banks are increasingly prioritizing government securities over lending to the private sector, according to S&P Global Ratings. The agency noted that while recapitalizing the Nigerian banking sector has strengthened banks' balance sheets, economic uncertainties and the need to preserve newly raised capital are influencing their lending decisions. S&P Global Ratings Managing Director for Africa and Country Head, Samira Mensah, explained that banks are calibrating their exposure to government securities, which represent indirect lending to sovereigns, in their investment securities portfolios depending on prevailing interest rates and yields. Although sovereign investments are not risk-free, banks may prefer taking sovereign risk over private-sector credit risk depending on the economic environment. The slow growth in loan books across several markets, including Nigeria, is partly due to domestic and international macroeconomic uncertainties, leading to a pause in lending and limiting the build-up of non-performing assets in the banking sector.",
  "summary": "Nume Ekeghe Nigerian banks are increasingly calibrating their exposure to government securities against private-sector lending, with some lenders preferring sovereign investments to taking on credit risks associated with businesses, the",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}