President Buhari Signs Banks, Other Financial Institutions Act 2020

The President, Muhammadu Buhari has signed the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act 2020 into law. The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, disclosed this on Friday in a statement titled “President Buhari assents to Banks and also Other Financial Institutions Act 2020″. According to the statement, the President signed the

piece of legislation on Thursday. Shehu explained that the new law repeals the extant Banks and also Other Financial Institutions Act 1991 as amended. He said the new law was expected to enhance the soundness and resilience of the financial system for sustainable growth and development of the Nigerian economy. Statement read, “The BOFI Act 2020 updates the enabling law in

response to developments and significant evolution in the financial sector over the last two decades. It will increase the appetite of banks and some other financial institutions to channel much-needed credit to the real sector to support economic recovery and promote sustainable growth. “In this respect, it introduces a credit tribunal to improve loan recovery and address the

incidence of high non performing loans within the financial system, which has been a key deterrent to lending by some financial institutions. Furthermore, it strengthens the regulatory and supervisory framework for the financial industry and provides additional tools for managing failing institutions and systemic distress to preserve financial stability amongst others. Central

Bank of Nigeria will hold structured engagements with stakeholders across various sectors of the economy on critical aspects of the Act in the coming months. “This enactment of the BOFI Act 2020 is a historic significant achievement, which is indicative of effective, productive collaboration between the Executive and Legislature arms of government.”