How CBN Prevented Nigeria’s Inflation From Rising To 42.81% – Cardoso

The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso, has declared that the policy intervention of the apex bank prevented Nigeria’s inflation from surging to 42.81% by December 2024.

Cardoso also revealed that the CBN would stick to orthodox monetary policies to tame inflation in 2025.

According to him, the diaspora remittances would rise to ₦31.79tn when fourth-quarter figures for 2024 are released.

Naijaonpoint reports the CBN Governor made the disclosures in Abuja on Thursday at the 2025 Monetary Policy Forum.

He further noted that throughout 2024, the CBN implemented bold policy measures across six Monetary Policy Committee meetings, including raising the Monetary Policy Rate by 875 basis points to 27.50 per cent, increasing the Cash Reserve Ratio for Other Depository Corporations by 1,750 basis points to 50.00 per cent, and adjusting the asymmetric corridor around the MPR.

“Counterfactual estimates suggest that without these decisive policy interventions, inflation could have reached 42.81 per cent by December 2024.”

He added, “Throughout 2024, the Bank implemented several bold policy measures across six MPC meetings, including raising the Monetary Policy Rate by a cumulative 875 basis points to 27.50 per cent, increasing the Cash Reserve Ratio of Other Depository Corporations by 1,750 basis points to 50.00 per cent, and adjusting the asymmetric corridor around the MPR,” Cardoso said.

He highlighted critical foreign exchange reforms implemented by the CBN to enhance market efficiency to include the unification of multiple exchange rate windows which contributed to a 79.4 per cent rise in remittances via International Money Transfer Operators to $4.18bn in the first three quarters of 2024, up from $2.33bn in the same period in 2023.

Other major FX-related interventions included clearing a $7bn FX backlog, which restored market confidence and improved FX liquidity, lifting restrictions on 41 items previously banned from access to the official FX market since 2015, and introducing new minimum capital requirements for banks, effective March 2026, to enhance resilience and global competitiveness in the sector.

The apex bank also launched the WIFI initiative under the National Financial Inclusion Strategy, aimed at bridging the gender gap in financial access by empowering women with financial services, education, and digital tools.

Also, the Nigeria Foreign Exchange Code was introduced to ensure integrity, transparency, and efficiency in the FX market.

Cardoso described the code as a binding commitment by the financial sector to rebuild trust and boost confidence.