The Bank of Industry (BoI) has called for greater mobilisation of long-term capital to finance Nigeria's industrial growth. At BoI's 2026 Annual Public Lecture in Abuja, Managing Director Olasupo Olusi stated that financing must reach more underserved businesses and translate into measurable economic impact. In 2025, BoI disbursed N645 billion to over 12,000 businesses, impacting 1.68 million jobs. However, Olusi argued that more capital is required to support inclusive economic transformation.
Olusi emphasised that Nigeria needs to rethink how capital is mobilised, structured, and deployed to support industrial activity and attract private investment into productive sectors. He stated that the focus is on mobilising, structuring, and deploying capital more effectively to deliver measurable development outcomes. This call for action aims to address the country's development challenges and promote economic growth.
To improve access to credit, BoI has launched MyBOI, an end-to-end digital portal designed to simplify the process of applying for and accessing BoI financing. The platform allows prospective customers to complete onboarding, undertake impact and sustainability assessments, submit financing applications, and track their progress digitally. This move is expected to reduce delays associated with manual and branch-based applications.
The digital portal is designed to serve micro, small, and medium enterprises, large businesses, cooperatives, associations, and other eligible customers. By streamlining the application process, BoI aims to make development finance more accessible and responsive. According to Olusi, access to finance is not only about the availability of funding but also about making the journey to that funding simpler and more efficient.
The portal is expected to reduce front-end application initiation time by at least 40 per cent within nine months. BoI is targeting a 30 per cent increase in qualified digital financing applications within 12 months and at least 60 per cent self-service adoption for new applications over the same period. This digital transformation aims to improve visibility for applicants and provide the bank with better data for credit decisions.
Panellists at the lecture, including former World Bank Director Asad Alam and Special Adviser to the President on Economic Affairs Tope Fasua, discussed Nigeria's development challenges. Alam noted that the country's development challenge should not be viewed solely through the availability of capital but also through how efficiently it is used. Fasua emphasised that critical areas such as power, logistics, and infrastructure still require significant financing.
The discussions reinforced the need for stronger financing for businesses and industrial activity. Panellists commended BoI's support for SMEs and the wider industrial sector while calling for more funding to enable the bank to expand its interventions. The event highlighted the importance of collaboration and innovative solutions to address Nigeria's development challenges and promote economic growth.
Key points
- BoI disbursed N645 billion in 2025 to over 12,000 businesses, impacting 1.68 million jobs.
- The bank has launched MyBOI, a digital portal designed to simplify access to credit for businesses.
- Panellists emphasised the need for stronger financing for businesses and industrial activity to support Nigeria's economic growth.
