“No Nigerian bank facing shutdown”

The Association of Corporate Communication and Marketing Professionals in Banks (ACAMB) has dismissed claims circulating on social media that some Nigerian banks will be shut down due to recapitalisation, insisting the banking sector remains stable and secure.

In a joint statement on Sunday, ACAMB President Rasheed Bolarinwa and General Secretary Jide Sipe described an Instagram video alleging that 12 banks would be closed by March 2026 as false and misleading.

According to the association, the video was designed to “mislead the public, stoke unnecessary panic and exploit alarmist misinformation for personal gain”.

ACAMB said the content creator showed “a fundamental lack of understanding of banking recapitalisation”, stressing that the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) policy is a proactive move to strengthen the financial system, not a response to distress.

“As repeatedly explained by the CBN, the recapitalisation exercise is a forward-looking, proactive policy designed to strengthen the banking system and position it to support the Federal Government’s aspiration of a $1 trillion economy by 2030,” the statement said.

“It is not a crisis response, nor is it an indication of distress.”

The association added that Nigerian banks are “safe, sound and adequately capitalised”, with strong buffers to meet regulatory and customer obligations.

It clarified that the exercise focuses on core ownership capital, not bonds or preference shares, and is not aimed at forced consolidation.

“All banks have a fair and realistic chance of meeting their recapitalisation targets, with more than one-third already having met theirs,” ACAMB said, adding that the CBN has expressed satisfaction with the pace of implementation.

Addressing claims against specific institutions, ACAMB said FirstBank, UBA, Fidelity Bank and FCMB are progressing well and face “no risk of undercapitalisation”, while Citibank Nigeria and Standard Chartered Bank Nigeria remain solid subsidiaries of their global parents.

The association warned that it would alert law-enforcement agencies to content that borders on economic sabotage or breaches the Cybercrime Act, noting that freedom of expression must be exercised responsibly.

“Nigerians remain the ultimate beneficiaries of a resilient and well-regulated banking system,” it said, urging the public to bank with confidence.