BREAKING: CBN Slices MPR to 11.5% from 12.5%

By Dipo Olowookere

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reduced the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) to 11.5 per cent from 12.5 per cent.

This decision was taken at the two-day Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting of the apex bank concluded in Abuja on Tuesday afternoon.

The Governor of the CBN, Mr Godwin Emefiele, while addressing newsmen on the outcome of the meeting, said members of the committee voted to have the benchmark interest rate sliced by one per cent or 100 basis points to 11.5 per cent.

The implication of this move, based on the recent directive to banks in the country, is that the interest rate paid by lenders for savings deposit will be dropped to 1.15 per cent per annum from 1.25 per cent per annum it was before the announcement today.

To put this in perspective, for N100,000 kept in the bank by a customer, he/she will get an interest of N95.83 per month if he/she does less than four withdrawals during the month.

Also at the briefing today, Mr Emefiele said the MPC adjusted the asymmetric corridor from +200/-500 around the MPR, but retained the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) at 27.5 per cent and the liquidity ratio at 30 per cent.