Currency In Circulation Drops By N37.94 Billion – CBN

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) money and credit report shows that currency in circulation in Nigeria fell by N37.94 billion in February to N3.25 trillion compared to N3.29 trillion recorded as of January 2022.

In its recent report, this shows a 1.2% decline on a month-on-month basis, while when compared to the corresponding period of 2021, it increased by 16.95%, compared to N2.78 trillion as of February 2021.

Credit by banks to the private sector increased by N1.46 trillion in February to N36.91 trillion from N35.45 trillion recorded as of the previous month. This represents an increase 4.1 percent month-on-month.

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Currency outside the banks as of February 2022 was N2.73 trillion, which is 1.7 percent lower than the N2.78 trillion as of the previous month, representing a decline of N47.53 billion.

Also banks’ credit to government also increased by 4.5 percent in February 2022, improving from N14.28 trillion recorded as of January 2022 to N14.92 trillion.

The growth in credit to both private and government parastatal could be attributed to the Central Bank’s policies to stimulate the economy.

Also, innovation in technology and the surge in the number of FinTechs in the lending space has brought more competition to the lending space, it says.

When compared to the corresponding period of 2021, it increased by 16.95 percent compared to N2.78 trillion as of February 2021.

Adding that, the several intervention policies pushed currency in circulation to its highest level in history in December 2021.