CIBN attributes growth in financial services contribution to GDP to high inclusion rate

The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) has said that the growth in contributions of the financial services sector to GDP is driven by an increase in the number of people using financial services.

CIBN President, Mr Ken Okpara said this at a media parley ahead of the 16th annual banking & finance conference themed, “Nigeria’s Economic Growth and Empowerment, the Role of the Financial Services Industry.”

The conference is scheduled to hold from September 5-6 in Abuja.

He said: “We have seen increase in the number of people using financial services and the banking system, we began to create platforms not necessarily physical structures where customers can get our services which reduced the cost of banking and other services reduced which also added to the bottom line, and the efficiency of the sector has also improved which added to the returns you’re seeing and we will continue to play our role as a pillar in providing support to the economy.”

Nigeria’s financial and insurance sector has recorded a 5.47 percent increase over the previous quarter’s result, according to the latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

NBS stated that the contributions of the finance and insurance sector to real GDP totaled 5.35 percent in the second quarter 2023.

BD/Hauwa Abu