JUST-IN: CBN Retains Benchmark Interest Rate At 27%

The Monetary Policy Committee of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has kept the benchmark interest rate unchanged at 27 per cent, extending its pause on monetary tightening.

CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, announced the decision on Tuesday at the end of the committee’s 303rd meeting in Abuja.

Cardoso said, “The Committee decided by a majority vote to maintain the monetary policy stance,” noting that members were not fully persuaded that current economic conditions justified another rate cut.

The decision came after a 50-basis-point reduction in September 2025 — the only cut since the current CBN administration began tightening the monetary policy cycle.

It also marks the MPC’s fourth consecutive hold this year.

The committee raised interest rates six times in 2024 in response to rising inflation and persistent currency pressures.