Lagos: The Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN) Plc says it has disbursed over N1 trillion to more than one million MSMEs and supported the creation of 1.6 million jobs since inception.
Introducing the impact of these achievements, Managing Director of DBN, Dr Tony Okpanachi, disclosed the updates to newsmen on Wednesday in Lagos.
Building on these results, Okpanachi said the next phase of the bank’s growth would focus on expanding support for MSMEs through deeper financial inclusion, increased capital mobilisation and targeted interventions for underserved sectors.
He said DBN aims to reach more than 2 million MSMEs and facilitate the creation of 2 million direct and indirect jobs over the next 5 years.
Okpanachi stated that the bank intends to achieve scale by expanding MSME support and fostering inclusive growth.
The bank targets N1 trillion in outstanding loans and plans to issue N500 billion in guarantees.
DBN seeks to mobilise N1.3 trillion in debt and equity capital for expansion.
The strategy emphasises inclusion, allocating 40 per cent of loans to women-led and 30 per cent to youth-owned businesses.
He added that 15 per cent of disbursements would be directed to MSMEs in underdeveloped geopolitical zones. These would also focus on select states.
The managing director said the bank also plans to expand green financing to between N75 billion and N100 billion. It will train 500,000 MSMEs through its capacity-building programmes.
Reviewing the bank’s cumulative impact, Okpanachi highlighted that DBN had onboarded 84 Participating Financial Institutions (PFIs), comprising commercial banks, microfinance banks, merchant banks and development finance institutions.
He said women-owned businesses accounted for 77 per cent of beneficiaries, while 28 per cent were youth-led enterprises.
According to him, the bank disbursed N108 billion to over 132,000 MSMEs in disadvantaged and conflict-affected states. These include Borno, Adamawa, Katsina, Yobe and Zamfara.
Okpanachi said DBN disbursed over N358 billion to more than 289,000 beneficiaries in 2025 alone. It also onboarded five additional PFIs.
Discussing subsidiary performance, Okpanachi stated that DBN’s subsidiary, Impact Credit Guarantee Ltd. (ICGL), had guaranteed loans exceeding N500 billion since inception.
He said ICGL, established in partnership with the World Bank, had supported over 93,000 MSMEs and small corporates. This was achieved through more than 130,000 credit guarantees.
The subsidiary, he added, had also supported over 203,000 jobs. It extended thousands of guarantees to businesses in underserved communities.
Okpanachi noted that ICGL had secured partnerships with institutions such as the African Development Bank and the European Investment Bank.
On financial sustainability, he projected a cumulative five-year profit before tax of about N300 billion.
“We are balancing developmental impact with strong financial performance to ensure DBN remains a sustainable development finance institution,” he said.
He added that the bank had maintained stable supervisory ratings from the Central Bank of Nigeria. It also retained top credit ratings from Agusto & Co. and GCR Ratings.
Complementing Okpanachi’s remarks, Managing Director of ICGL, Mr Anthony Asonye, underscored the importance of credit guarantees in expanding access to finance for MSMEs.
Asonye described credit guarantees as a critical tool for mitigating lending risks. They encourage financial institutions to extend credit to underserved businesses.
He noted that the informal sector is a large part of Nigeria’s economy. It still faces limited access to formal financing due to perceived risks to commercial lenders.
According to him, Nigeria has about 41 million registered SMEs. These contribute between 45% and 49% of the nation’s GDP, while receiving less than 1% of all commercial bank lending.
“SMEs contribute nearly half of our GDP, yet they receive less than one per cent of total banking credit.
“Banks don’t lend to them because they lack the capacity to take loans. Collateral remains a major challenge. Perceived risks in the operating environment push interest rates to between 35% and 40%,” he said.
To address these challenges, Asonye said ICGL, in partnership with the World Bank, operates a credit-collateral substitute scheme designed to de-risk lending to MSMEs.
He explained that the scheme provides silent guarantees to commercial banks.
These cover up to 60% of default risk for standard loans and up to 75% for loans to businesses owned by women and youths.
“Our guarantee is a first-class, cash-backed collateral substitute.
“Commercial banks can now deploy more assets to the SME sector with confidence. There is a reliable backstop. It is a silent guarantee designed to avoid moral hazard and incentivise lending to the real drivers of the economy,” he said.
