Non-performing loans are not accidents: How poor loan monitoring and weak enforcement are strangulating Nigeria’s productive economy

Nigeria's banking sector is bleeding. Despite several attempts by the Federal Government to reduce the rise of Non-Performing Loans (NPLs), part of which was the creation and enactment of the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria, AMCON Act, into law in 2010, NPLs have continued to rise astronomically. By 2025, bad loans are still rising in great proportions, with Central Bank of Nigeria data pointing to growing repayment failures among small enterprises, major firms, and individual borrowers. Public debate quickly turned to inflation, curren