Deposit Money Banks in Nigeria grew the ratio of their loans as a proportion of deposits to 61.2 percent in the Month of April, as they sought to comply with a regulatory minimum of 65 percent set by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The April LDR figure is the highest level yet in 2020, according to the latest CBN data.
Aggregate LDR was 58.91 percent in January, 59.82 percent in February, 60.69 percent in March, the data shows.
The CBN last year in a push to have banks play more role in the real sector, set at 65 percent the minimum percentage of their deposits, which they must give out as loans.
A punitive Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) debit is the penalty for not meeting the level.
The CBN debited lenders a total of N459 billion earlier this month for regulatory infractions related to not meeting the Loan to Deposit Ratio (LDR) threshold, people familiar with the matter told MoneyCentral.
The CBN has set a minimum CRR of 27.5 percent.
The growth in aggregate credit to the economy by banks is put at N2.35 trillion since the inception of the LDR policy, Godwin Emefiele said at the last Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting in Abuja.
