Zenith Bank, Access Holdings and Ecobank are among 16 Nigerian banks that have already met the capital requirements set by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), less than 100 days to the March 31, 2026 deadline.
Other banks that have satisfied the capital thresholds for their respective licence categories include United Bank for Africa (UBA), GTBank, Stanbic IBTC, Wema Bank, Jaiz Bank, Lotus Bank, Providus Bank, Greenwich Merchant Bank and PremiumTrust Bank.
Also on the list are Sterling Bank, Globus Bank, Citibank Nigeria and Nova Bank, bringing the total number of compliant financial institutions to 16.
Several lenders, including Fidelity Bank and FCMB Group, are still at various stages of capital raising and regulatory verification but remain confident of meeting the deadline.
Speaking at the U.S.-Nigeria Executive Business Roundtable held in Washington, D.C., the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Olayemi Cardoso, said the recapitalisation programme had entered its final and most critical phase.
“Nigeria is now in the final phase of its most significant banking-sector strengthening effort in over a decade.
“The recapitalisation programme is designed to safeguard financial stability, expand banks’ capacity to lend, and ensure the financial system can underpin Nigeria’s broader economic transformation.”
He disclosed that beyond the 16 banks that have already met or exceeded the new capital thresholds, 27 banks have raised capital through public offers, rights issues, private placements and mergers.
According to Cardoso, industry-wide stress tests conducted by the apex bank show that Nigeria’s banking system remains fundamentally sound, liquid and resilient.
“With about four months to the March 2026 deadline, our focus is on ensuring orderly completion, maintaining strong supervisory oversight, and emerging with a banking sector that is more shock-resistant, more transparent, and better positioned to lend into Nigeria’s growth story,” he added.
Analysts say the recapitalisation exercise is entering a decisive stage that could reshape ownership structures across the industry as banks court new investors to strengthen their capital bases.
FCMB Group confirmed that, in addition to successfully concluding its public offer, it is on track to finalise the sale of a minority stake in one of its subsidiaries before the end of December.
“We have successfully concluded our public offer and are on track to complete the minority subsidiary sale by the end of December,” the group said. “Subject to CBN capital verification, shareholder approval and required regulatory consents, we are positioned to deliver the ₦500 billion capital target ahead of the March 2026 deadline for our banking subsidiary, FCMB Limited.”
While large-scale mergers and acquisitions are yet to materialise, analysts believe ownership changes are increasingly likely as the deadline approaches.
Head of Financial Institutions Ratings at Agusto & Co., Ayokunle Olubunmi, said only a few banks are still racing to meet the threshold.
“In terms of mergers and acquisitions, it’s still very wide. Nothing much for now. But the way it’s looking, maybe by January or February, it might be getting better,” he said.
Olubunmi noted that private placements and rights issues could dilute existing shareholders who fail to participate in capital-raising exercises.
“There might be some change in ownership. Some people might take over, because there’s a lot of money in the economy. It’s more about what proportion of your shareholding you are willing to give,” he said.
He added that the recapitalisation drive is attracting new investors into the sector and strengthening banks’ long-term stability.
“Of course, the partnership or ownership structure of some banks will change significantly during this process,” Olubunmi said.