Business & Markets · Credit to private sector · Nigeria
Nigeria’s credit to private sector was 13.2% of GDP in 2023.
13.2% of GDP
2023
Up 3.6 pp from 2022.
Stale — last updated 8 Oct 2026
In plain words
13.2% of GDP
What it is. This measure adds up the loans and similar claims that banks and other financial institutions hold on private firms and households in Nigeria, then compares the total with the size of the economy. It shows how far the formal financial system funds private activity. Money raised on share markets, informal lending between individuals and borrowing directly from abroad all fall outside it.
Neither way is good in itself. A higher ratio means more financing for firms and households, and it also means more debt and more exposure for lenders. A lower ratio can reflect cautious borrowers or a shallow financial system, so the direction carries no verdict on its own. The latest figure is 13.2% of GDP for 2023, up from 9.6% of GDP a year earlier, a rise of 3.6 percentage points. Since 2014 the range runs from a low of 7.9% of GDP in 2019 to a high of 14.6% of GDP in 2016. The 2023 reading therefore sits close to the top of that range and just below the 2016 peak.
Why it matters. Private credit equal to 13.2% of GDP means Nigerian businesses and households can draw on bank finance for working capital, equipment and housing at a level well above the 2019 low. Banks hold more of their lending with private borrowers than they did then, so repayment performance matters more to their balance sheets. The next annual reading will show whether the 2023 jump holds.
| Period | Credit to private sector · Nigeria |
|---|---|
| 2014 | 13.3% of GDP |
| 2015 | 13.1% of GDP |
| 2016 | 14.6% of GDP |
| 2017 | 12.9% of GDP |
| 2018 | 10.2% of GDP |
| 2019 | 7.9% of GDP |
| 2020 | 8.8% of GDP |
| 2021 | 9.7% of GDP |
| 2022 | 9.6% of GDP |
| 2023 | 13.2% of GDP |
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (CC BY 4.0) · Licence: CC BY 4.0
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Strata-AF™ Data, Credit to private sector, Nigeria, 2023; source World Bank, World Development Indicators (CC BY 4.0), retrieved 8 Oct 2026; https://data.strata-af.com/business/private-sector-credit/nigeria
Data insights · Worked out from the published figures
What this means
Working this out from the published figures…
Strata AI commentary is coming — reviewed, dated, and generated only from the figures on this page.
Methodology
Domestic credit to the private sector as a share of GDP. Unit: % of GDP.
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (series FS.AST.PRVT.GD.ZS), retrieved through the World Bank API and published under CC BY 4.0. Updated annually; the World Bank's own source notes apply.