Banking
Heritage Bank Partners CBN, LCFE to Disburse N41bn to Wheat Farmers
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Farmers in 14 states of the federation will soon receive N41 billion to grow wheat on about 111,025 hectares of land as part of efforts to expand the production of the crop in the country.
The money will be disbursed to the wheat farmers by Heritage Bank Plc in partnership with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
To make the programme seamless, Heritage Bank has commenced the registration of the farmers and this is done through the Lagos Commodities and Futures Exchange (LCFE).
The MD/CEO of Heritage Bank, Mr Ifie Sekibo, while addressing newsmen, expressed optimism that the scheme would help reduce the nation’s food import bill by increasing wheat production, create market linkages between smallholders farmers and anchors/processors, create an ecosystem that drives value chain financing, improve access to credit by the smallholder farmers by developing credit history through the initiative and many more.
Mr Sekibo who was represented by the Divisional Head, Agribusiness, Natural Resources & Project Development, Heritage Bank, Olugbenga Awe, stated that the partnership was basically to consummate Wheat Seed Multiplication Project under the CBN’s Brown Revolution Initiative, in order to ensure due diligence on loan administration, monitoring and recovery, which would bring about increase in the domestic production of wheat and close the wide supply gap in the Nigerian agricultural space.
“What we want to achieve is to end importation of seeds and make Nigeria self-sufficient in wheat production.
“We are working with about 30 firms focusing only on seed production and also working with CBN to make sure we register all farmers. We believe working with LCFE will move Nigerian farmers from an informal approach to a structured approach”, he said.
He further explained that whilst riding on the success of the wet season, “we decided to focus on the dry season which comes naturally to our people. As a bank, we are working on two things; one is to ensure the continuous multiplication of seeds and the other is to focus on the grains.
Former Executive Director of Lake Chad Research Institute (LCRI), Dr Oluwasina Olabanji commended Heritage Bank for its efforts in reducing wheat importation and saving the country from the $2 billion spent annually on the importation of wheat, calling on other banks to emulate the lender in efforts to achieving wheat sufficiency in the country.
“If this money is saved it could be used for infrastructural development. It is true that there are a lot of linkages not only on financial institutions but also in the value chain, these linkages have been moulded together with the intervention of the CBN and Heritage Bank,” he said.
He explained that the CBN and Heritage Bank’s intervention has become critical due to the high demand for wheat in Nigeria and the inability to meet that demand.
Speaking also, the Managing Director of LCFE, Mr Akinsola Akeredolu-Ale, commended the CBN and Heritage Bank for their support, which have leveraged Nigeria to be on the right track for self-sufficiency in food production.
He said the commodity exchange in partnership with Heritage Bank would provide an enabling environment for farmers, warehouse owners, commodity middlemen and commodity merchants, to be able to trade Wheat.
He noted that LCFE has created a platform that enhances liquidity in the commodity market, enhances the revenue base of the country and enables commodity traders to manage risk.
Business Post reports that Heritage Bank is throwing its weight behind this scheme as one of the participating financial institutions (PFIs) under the CBN’s Anchor Borrowers’ Programme IABP).
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is considering the recapitalisation and restructuring of Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) to address the significant financing gap facing micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs).
The Deputy Governor of the apex bank in charge of Economic Policy, Mr Muhammad Abdullahi, disclosed this during a panel session at the launch of the Nigeria Development Update by the World Bank in Abuja on Tuesday.
He explained that a recent review by the apex bank found that existing DFIs were too small to meet the credit needs of businesses.
DFIs are specialised, government-backed financial entities designed to promote economic growth by funding critical sectors like agriculture, infrastructure, and SMEs. Key institutions include the Bank of Industry (BOI), Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN), Nigeria Export Import Bank (NEXIM Bank), Bank of Agriculture (BOA), National Credit Guarantee Company Limited, and Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation, among others.
“We conducted a review last year of the development finance space. Across all the DFIs in Nigeria, the total asset base is slightly above N8 trillion, whereas what is required in development finance for MSMEs is over N130 trillion,” he said.
He said that simply injecting capital would not solve the problem.
“The only way to address this is not only through public sector capital injections into these institutions, but also by making them bankable and investable,” he said.
Abdullahi said the CBN and the Ministry of Finance are reviewing DFI structures to improve their efficiency and risk appetite.
“We are reviewing the entire sector to ensure that we can correct the incentives, improve risk appetite, and also strengthen capital levels,” the deputy governor added.
He also said the reforms aim to introduce stronger market-based principles.
“We are looking at the structure to see how more market fundamentals can be incorporated, because the way it has been done in the past has not delivered the desired results,” Mr Abdullahi said.
On the persistent financing challenge for MSMEs, he said lending to the real sector has always been one of the structural challenges “Nigeria’s economy faces in terms of ensuring that credit reaches businesses that require it”.
Business Post reports that the CBN recently concluded the recapitalisation of the Nigerian banking sector, while the insurance sector is ongoing.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The women-focused initiative by Sterling Bank, OneWoman, is already yielding positive results, especially in promoting financial inclusion and empowering female-led enterprises in Nigeria.
Business Post reports that the programme was created to support women through three key pillars of capital, capacity, and community.
In 2025, according to the Head of the OneWoman Initiative, Ms Ezinne Nwokafor, the initiative gave out N43.9 billion loans to 2,450 female entrepreneurs, trained 6,000 of them, served about 380,000 women across three sectors of career women, women in business and freshers, and their vision 2030 is to give out N500 billion loans to one million women across their three sectors.
She noted that a significant majority of Nigerian women remain excluded from formal credit, with only a small percentage able to access structured financing. Despite improvements in financial inclusion, women continue to face systemic barriers that limit their ability to secure funding.
Ms Nwokafor pointed out that women account for a substantial share of micro, small, and medium enterprises and contribute meaningfully to the economy, yet face a financing gap estimated at $42 billion annually, according to the International Finance Corporation.
She also referenced data showing that more than half of women-led businesses identify access to finance as a major constraint, while rejection rates for loan applications remain significantly higher for women than for men.
According to her, these challenges are often linked to structural issues such as gaps in asset ownership, social norms, and limited access to financial data and visibility.
“Sterling’s OneWoman initiative is positioned to bridge this gap by combining financial solutions, mentorship, capacity building, and community support for women across different stages of their journey,” she said at the Funding Her Future Breakfast Dialogue in Lagos.
The session brought together voices from across sectors for a focused and necessary conversation on how to unlock more inclusive and effective financing pathways for women-led businesses in Nigeria.
On his part, the chief executive of Sterling Bank, Mr Abubakar Suleiman, said, “Women-led businesses need the right support systems, the right networks, and the right ecosystem to grow with confidence and scale with resilience.”
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Alpha Morgan Bank has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting institutions that drive intellectual growth and national development.
The lender gave this reassurance at the commissioning of the Redeemer’s University Business School by Pastor (Mrs) Folu Adeboye, the wife of the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adeboye.
Speaking at the event, the Managing Director of Alpha Morgan Bank, Mr Ade Buraimo, said the company was proud to be associated with the school, noting its commitment to education and institutional development.
As part of its broader focus on knowledge sharing and thought leadership, Alpha Morgan Bank will host its Economic Review Webinar in May 2026, bringing together experts to share insights on key economic trends and opportunities.
The commissioning of the business school was witnessed by distinguished guests, including the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of Redeemers University, Professor Oluwatoyin Ogundipe; the Vice Chancellor, Professor Shadrach Olufemi Akindele; Mrs Bola Obasanjo; and other notable dignitaries.
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