JP Morgan to secure Nigerian banking licence after N50 billion deposit with CBN

American multinational banking institution JP Morgan Chase & Co. is on track to obtain a banking licence in Nigeria, having deposited N50 billion ($38 million) with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Bloomberg reported Tuesday, citing sources with knowledge of the matter.

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Paying the deposit marks part of the last regulatory hurdles to be cleared by the bank before it can be granted approval to run a merchant banking business in Nigeria, the news outlet said, quoting insiders who spoke on the condition that their identity will not be disclosed, given that the process is still private.

Earlier this month, Dapo Olagunju, the managing director of JP Morgan West Africa, had revealed during the Nigeria-Asia Financial Connectivity Dialogue in Singapore the bank’s plan to set up a merchant banking subsidiary in the country.

The CBN teamed up with JP Morgan, the Nigerian Exchange Group and FMDQ Group to convene the dialogue.

According to Bloomberg, JP Morgan, the biggest bank in the US, hopes to receive the permit by year-end or in early 2027, provided it is able to obtain all the requisite approvals.

The expansion push forms part of JP Morgan plan to broaden its presence in Africa, where it is looking to scale up its share of payments, lending, trade finance and corporate banking business.

At the moment, JP Morgan operates a representative office in Lagos, meaning the licence, if issued, will enable it to enlarge its services, which it provides through its asset & wealth management and commercial & investment banking business, in the country.

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JP Morgan’s presence in Nigeria dates back to 1961, when Chase Manhattan Bank, which later evolved into JP Morgan Chase & Co., opened a branch in Lagos, providing a wide range of commercial banking services to local businesses and individuals.

A year earlier, Chase International Investment Corporation, a unit of Chase Manhattan Bank, served as the lead partner in organising Nigerian Textile Mills in Lagos, regarded as the first major private industrial project with an American interest in Nigeria.