Nigeria, Nov. 1 -- The President Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), Dele Alabi, has urged Nigerian banks to increase lending to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), in order to generate higher returns for banks after the industry recapitalisation.

Mr Alabi, who is also the CIBN's Chairman of Council, stated this at the 2026 Fellowship Investiture of CIBN, held in Victoria Island, Lagos, on Saturday. The theme of the event was "Bank Recapitalisation: Leveraging New Bank Capital for Nigeria's Industrial Transformation."

He said the success of the banking sector recapitalisation exercise, which ended on 31 March, would depend on how effectively the new capital is deployed to support productive sectors of the ec...