UPDATED: CBN’s MPC holds base lending rate at 26.5% for  two consecutive times

By Bamidele Famoofo

WorldStage– The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) at its 306th Policy Meeting held between July 20th and 21st, 2026, voted to hold the Monetary Policy Rate ( MPR) at its current level (26.50%).

The MPC chaired by the Governor of the Central  Bank, Olayemi Cardoso, also decided to hold the asymmetric corridor around the MPR at +50bps/-450bps.

 Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) for Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) stayed at 45.0 percent, and Merchant Banks at 16.0 percent.

The Committee held the CRR on non-Treasury Single Account (TSA) public sector deposits at 75.0 percent  while Liquidity Ratio for banks remained at 30.0 percent.

In February 2026, at its 304th meeting, MPC  took a bold decision to cut MPR by 50 basis point from 27 percent to 26.5 percent.

For two consecutive monetary policy meetings ( May and July) the policy rates have been put on hold.