Follow Us on Google
From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
President Bola Tinubu has hailed the Bank of Industry (BOI) for disbursing a record N636 billion in loans to businesses across Nigeria in 2025, calling it the highest annual financing volume in the bank’s history and solid proof of his administration’s economic reforms.
In a statement by Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, yesterday, he noted how macroeconomic adjustments were boosting development finance institutions and channeling capital into key sectors. The funds reached over 7,000 enterprises nationwide, with breakdowns, including N202 billion for agro-allied businesses, N100 billion for critical infrastructure like broadband, power, aviation and transportation, N79 billion for manufacturing, N77 billion for extractive industries and N55 billion for services. BOI also deployed N73 billion in managed and matching funds for state governments and partners.
President Tinubu linked the achievement directly to real economic gains. “The N636 billion disbursed by the Bank of Industry in 2025 translates directly into productive capacity across Nigeria,” he stated. “It financed agro-processing expansion, strengthened manufacturing output, supported infrastructure delivery and empowered thousands of enterprises across our states.”
He emphasised resilience amid global challenges, saying, “At a time of global financing constraints, Nigeria expanded access to long-term capital for its businesses. That is a direct outcome of reform, credibility and institutional discipline.”
Disbursements reflected an inclusive approach: nano enterprises got N51 billion, micro businesses N32 billion, SMEs N178 billion and large enterprises N375 billion. Under the Federal Government’s N200 billion MSME intervention, BOI hit over 95 percent performance. The Presidential Conditional Grant Scheme aided 957,400 beneficiaries, while BOI’s efforts created or retained about 1.6 million jobs, supporting over 7,000 MSMEs and 570 startups.
Other News
He noted that targeted initiatives shone brightly. The guaranteed loans for women programme delivered N10 billion, with up to N50 million per beneficiary. Youth enterprises accessed N12 billion and the rural area programme on investment for development funnelled over N6.5 billion to 880 rural enterprises across 36 states and the FCT.
Strategic projects included upgrading a tomato processing plant from 3.1 to 10 metric tonnes per hour, linking 47,508 smallholder farmers to value chains, deploying 100 mini-grids to connect 11,777 new customers to power and cutting over 20,000 tonnes of annual carbon emissions. The investment in digital and creative enterprises programme trained 400 youths, prepared 500 founders for investment, funded 100 tech ventures and reached over 300,000 Nigerians.
BOI maintained robust health, with a non-performing loan ratio below 1.5 percent despite headwinds, bolstered by a €2 billion syndicated facility in 2024 and €210 million more from partners in 2025. The bank earned designation as Nigeria’s first National Implementing Entity for the UN Adaptation Fund and accolades for sustainable finance.
President Tinubu praised this discipline, saying, “Development finance must be disciplined, measurable and aligned with national priorities. What we are witnessing is the transition from strategy to scale. Our economic transformation will be built on production, value addition and enterprise growth. We will continue to crowd in capital, deepen institutional reform and ensure that access to finance supports real sector expansion across Nigeria.”
He reaffirmed commitment to scaling reforms for industrialisation and inclusive growth.
