Nigeria’s largest listed conglomerates and industrial giants have executed a massive balance sheet cleanup, reducing their combined debt profile by 21.5% to ₦8.73 trillion as of December 2025.
This deleveraging trend, down from ₦11.12 trillion in 2024, marks a strategic pivot toward financial stability as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) begins to ease its aggressive monetary policy.
“This benign interest rates as well as a gradual reduction in borrowing costs will magnify the capacity for future borrowing at a time when entities are aggressive about expansion plans in the face of a gradual economic recovery and stability in the foreign exchange market,” said an industry expert who doesn’t want his name mentioned.
The “Debt Reset” is being driven by three primary catalysts: the repayment of expensive short-term loans, a stronger Naira shrinking dollar-denominated liabilities, and a shift toward the Commercial Paper (CP) market for cheaper, market-based financing.
The Deleveraging Scorecard: 2024 vs. 2025
The reduction in total debt has significantly lowered interest expenses, providing firms with the “dry powder” needed to fund expansion plans as the economy stabilizes.
Data gathered by MoneyCentral shows that non-financial firms have a combined debt (both long and short term) of N8.73 trillion as at December 2025, which is 21.50 percent lower than 2024’s N11.12 trillion.
| Metric | FY 2024 | FY 2025 (Audited) | % Change |
| Combined Corporate Debt | ₦11.12 Trillion | ₦8.73 Trillion | -21.5% |
| Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) | 27.25% (Peak) | 26.5% | -75 bps |
| 10-Year Bond Yield | 18.97% | 15.45% | -352 bps |
| CP Issuance (Jan – July 2025) | ₦0.76 Trillion | ₦1.58 Trillion | +107% |
Source: MoneyCentral
The Dovish Pivot: Why Rates are Falling
The Central Bank of Nigeria signaled a new era on February 24, 2026, by cutting the MPR by 50 basis points to 26.5%. This move, supported by external reserves hitting a $50.45 billion 13-year high, is already rippling through the debt markets:
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Yield Compression: The 10-year government bond yield has cooled to 15.45%, making it cheaper for companies like Dangote Cement and MTN Nigeria to refinance their long-term debt.
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Refinancing Boom: As yields fall, firms are expected to move away from high-interest bank overdrafts toward fixed-income instruments.
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Capex Boost: Lower borrowing costs directly improve the viability of new projects, allowing firms to achieve higher ROE on capital-intensive investments.
The Rise of Commercial Papers (CPs)
With traditional bank lending rates still relatively high, Nigerian firms are flocking to the FMDQ Exchange to issue Commercial Papers.
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Volume Surge: CP issuances grew by 107% between January and July 2025, reaching ₦1.58 trillion. This momentum has accelerated in 2026, with February issuances jumping 165% month-on-month to ₦143.19 billion.
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Market Leaders: Access Bank (₦193.25bn), Dangote Cement, and Dangote Sugar have been the most aggressive users of this window to manage working capital and short-term liquidity.
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The FX Advantage: The appreciation of the Naira in late 2025 and early 2026 has significantly reduced the “Naira equivalent” of dollar-denominated loans, resulting in unrealized FX gains that have further bolstered corporate credit ratings.
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