The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reportedly given approval to eight commercial banks in the country to operate internationally.
Legit.ng reports that the CBN has also provided a breakdown of banks granted licenses to operate nationally and regionally.
In recent months banks have been working on upgrading their licenses and expanding their operations.
According to information sourced from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), there are at least 33 banks in Nigeria.
The licenses under which these banks operate vary, with some banks having national or regional licenses and others serving as merchant banks.
Among the 33 banks, the apex bank approved eight to operate as international banks.
Below is a list of banks in Nigeria and their type of licenses as of December 2021.
Banks allowed to open branches outside Nigeria: Access Bank PLC, Fidelity Bank PLC, First City Monument Bank PLC, First Bank Nigeria Limited, Guaranty Trust Bank PLC, Union Bank of Nigeria PLC, United Bank of Africa PLC and Zenith Bank PLC.
Commercial banking license with national authorisation: Citibank Nigeria Limited, Ecobank Nigeria Plc, Heritage Bank Limited, Keystone Bank Limited, Polaris Bank Plc, Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc, Standard Chartered Bank Limited, Sterling Bank Plc, Titan Trust Bank Ltd, Unity Bank Plc and Wema Bank Plc.
Commercial banking license with regional authorisation: Globus Bank Limited, SunTrust Bank Nigeria Limited, Providus Bank Plc, Parallex Bank Ltd and Premium Trust Bank Ltd.
Non-interest banking license with national authorisation: Jaiz Bank Plc.
List of non-interest banks with regional authorisation: Taj Bank Limited – Abuja and Lotus Bank Limited – Lagos.
List of merchant banks with regional authorisation: Coronation Merchant Bank, FBN Merchant Bank, FSDH Merchant Bank, Greenwich Merchant Bank, Nova Merchant Bank and Rand Merchant Bank.