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JPMorgan Pays N50bn to CBN, Nears Merchant Banking Licence in Nigeria
JPMorgan Chase & Co. has taken a major step towards securing a banking licence in Nigeria after depositing N50 billion (about $38 million) with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Bloomberg reports.
Sources familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the process is private, told the news platform that the deposit fulfills one of the final conditions for regulatory approval.
The payment aligns with the minimum capital threshold set by the CBN under its March 2024 recapitalisation framework, which requires N50 billion for merchant banks and N500 billion for commercial banks with international licence.
Bloomberg noted that while the deposit does not automatically guarantee approval, it is a strong indication that the largest lender in the United States is prepared to commence merchant banking operations in Nigeria should its application be successful. The bank is reportedly expecting approval by end of 2026 or early 2027.
The move comes weeks after the bank publicly disclosed its expansion plans. On October 8, Dapo Olagunju, Managing Director for West Africa at JPMorgan, said the lender plans to upgrade its Lagos representative office — which has been operational since the 1980s — into a full-fledged branch and launch a merchant bank before the end of 2026, subject to CBN approval.
If licensed, JPMorgan would be able to offer dollar-denominated loans to large Nigerian corporates currently constrained by limited access to foreign currency financing. The bank was also one of the lead arrangers for Nigeria’s $2.2 billion Eurobond issuance in 2024.
