Kehinde Fajobi
Nigeria’s money supply increased to ₦110.97 trillion in January 2025, reflecting an 18.3% year-on-year growth from ₦93.77 trillion in the same period of 2024.
This is according to the latest figures from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), released yesterday, February 20.
The rise was primarily driven by a surge in quasi money—funds held in savings accounts, treasury bills, money market instruments, and foreign currency deposits—which expanded by 21% to ₦74.07 trillion from ₦61.2 trillion in January 2024.
Demand deposits also saw a 13.6% rise, reaching ₦32.15 trillion from ₦28.3 trillion.
Currency circulating outside the banking system surged by 44.5%, hitting ₦4.74 trillion compared to ₦3.28 trillion a year earlier.
Narrow money (M1), which includes liquid assets, increased by 16.7% to ₦36.9 trillion from ₦31.6 trillion.
The expansion in money supply was also influenced by higher government borrowing.
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Data from the Debt Management Office (DMO) showed that Nigeria’s public debt climbed by 6% quarter-on-quarter, reaching ₦142.3 trillion in Q3 2024.
Credit to the government grew significantly, jumping 54% to ₦24.51 trillion in January 2025 from ₦23.51 trillion the previous year.
However, lending to the private sector declined by 2.09%, dropping to ₦74.9 trillion from ₦76.5 trillion.
As a result, total domestic credit fell slightly by 0.5% to ₦99.4 trillion from ₦99.9 trillion.
Analysts at Cowry Asset Management Limited cautioned that Nigeria’s economic outlook remains uncertain, warning that without effective structural reforms and improved revenue generation, financial instability could worsen.