Microfinance banks recorded 22,977 financing-statement filings in the first quarter of 2026, a 38.4 per cent increase from 16,600 in the same period of 2025, reinforcing their dominance of Nigeria’s secured-credit market.
Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Quarterly Statistics on the Number of Financing Statements by Creditor and Debtor Type, sourced from the National Collateral Registry, showed that MFBs accounted for 84.6 per cent of all filings in Q1 2026, despite a sharp increase in commercial-bank activity.
An analysis by The PUNCH found that the MFBs added 6,377 filings year-on-year, even as their market share fell from 94.1 per cent in Q1 2025. The decline reflected a surge in filings by deposit money banks rather than a contraction in MFB activity.
Meanwhile, total financing-statement filings across all creditor categories, including Development Finance Institutions, Finance Houses, Mortgage Banks and Non-bank Financial Institutions, rose 53.9 per cent to 27,170 in Q1 2026 from 17,650 a year earlier.
Deposit money banks recorded the biggest increase, with their filings jumping 955.1 per cent from 272 to 2,870 during the period. Despite the surge, MFBs still accounted for more than four out of every five financing-statement filings in the quarter, underscoring their continued importance to micro and small-business financing.
MFB activity also strengthened through the quarter.
Filings rose from 6,110 in January to 8,045 in February and peaked at 8,822 in March. March’s 8,822 filings represented a 45.4 per cent increase over the 6,066 recorded in March 2025. February rose 39.2 per cent from 5,779, while January increased 28.5 per cent from 4,755.
Analysts react
In separate phone interviews with The PUNCH, expert analysts, including Research Analyst at CSL Stockbrokers, Mobifoluwa Adesina, said the MFBs’ credit filing growth showed deeper penetration of formal financing among underserved businesses.
“Indeed, the increase in financing-statement filings is a useful indicator of credit activity and financial inclusion, particularly because it suggests that more micro and small businesses are accessing formal financing,” he said.
But the investment analyst cautioned: “However, the number of filings should not be interpreted as a direct measure of the size or value of Nigeria’s credit market, since a filing records a lender’s security interest and different filings can represent vastly different loan sizes.”
Adesina said the data should complement indicators such as loan values, outstanding SME credit, loan growth and repayment performance.
“Nevertheless, the 38.4 per cent y/y increase in MFB filings is significant as it points to deeper credit penetration among an important but traditionally underserved segment of the economy,” he remarked.
He attributed the MFBs’ dominance to their business model and proximity to micro and small businesses
“In my view, the dominance of MFBs largely reflects their business model and proximity to the micro and small-business segment. They are designed to serve underserved borrowers and are generally better positioned to accommodate smaller loan sizes, shorter tenors and more frequent repayment structures,” Adesina said.
He urged commercial banks to adopt more flexible approaches to SME lending.
“Commercial banks can learn from MFBs by making SME lending faster, more flexible and relationship-driven, using cash flows and transaction history alongside traditional collateral to assess borrowers. Simplifying processes and offering financing that matches the needs and cash cycles of smaller businesses can also improve access to credit,” he said.
On her part, Associate, Investment Research and Consulting at Afrinvest, Olamide Ologunagbe, said regulation had made lending central to the MFB business model.
“Microfinance banks have a mandate to lend to their customers and are required to maintain a loan-to-deposit ratio of about 80 per cent. Given the nature of their licences, they are also expected to lend to small businesses and individuals. By design, MFBs serve as the credit base for the micro economy, and this shapes how they run their businesses,” she said.
She added that MFBs had less scope than deposit money banks to rely on investment income.
“They are also expected to generate 80 per cent of their gross income from interest income, making lending the core of their business model. So, by default, the biggest incentive for MFBs is their regulatory mandate to lend,” Ologunagbe said.
Beyond MFBs and commercial banks, finance houses increased their filings by 265.2 per cent, from 155 in Q1 2025 to 566 in Q1 2026, while non-bank financial institutions rose 21.7 per cent from 622 to 757.
The commercial-bank increase was particularly pronounced in March, when DMB filings climbed to 1,914 from 108 a year earlier.
The development means Nigeria’s secured-credit market is expanding on two fronts: MFBs are deepening their reach among smaller borrowers, while commercial banks are rapidly increasing their use of the collateral-registration system.