BREAKING: CBN Retains Interest Rate for Nigerian Banks at at 26.5% Amid Rising Inflation

The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria has decided to maintain the country’s benchmark interest rate at 26.5%.

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Speaking on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, after the committee’s 305th meeting held in Abuja, the CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, confirmed that the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) would remain unchanged.

He explained that the committee also kept other key financial indicators steady. The Cash Reserve Ratio was retained at 45 per cent for commercial banks and 16 per cent for merchant banks, while non-Treasury Single Account public sector deposits will continue to attract a 75 per cent CRR.

In addition, the MPC left the standing lending and deposit facility corridor unchanged at +50 and -450 basis points around the MPR.

The latest decision comes after the apex bank reduced the interest rate by 50 basis points in February 2026 and maintained the same rate during the November 2025 MPC meeting.

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The committee’s choice to hold rates steady follows a slight increase in the country’s inflation figures.

According to the latest Consumer Price Index report released by the National Bureau of Statistics, Nigeria’s headline inflation rose from 15.38 per cent in March 2026 to 15.69 per cent in April 2026, showing an increase of 0.31 percentage points.

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