The financing aims to boost access to finance for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises in northern Nigeria and those led by women nationwide.
British International Investment (BII) said it was providing a $50m (€43m) credit facility to Nigeria’s First City Monument Bank (FCMB) for onward lending to micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in the country.
The UK development finance institution (DFI) said that 70% of the facility would be targeted at financing MSMEs in northern Nigeria, with the remainder aimed at empowering women-owned businesses across Nigeria as a whole.
The lending aims to help address the lack of support for MSMEs in sectors such as agriculture, trade and manufacturing in northern Nigeria, a region generally underserved by providers of affordable finance compared to the country’s economic hubs in the south. The partnership between BII and FCMB will also support internal capacity-building programmes and aim to provide improved assessments of market opportunities.
FCMB is a significant lender to Nigerian businesses, providing more than N533bn (€320m) in credit lines to businesses nationwide, as end-September 2025. The bank provided 24% of the total N1.8trn of loans provided by banks to Nigeria’s SMEs in 2024, according to the country’s central bank.
Yemisi Edun, managing director and CEO of FCMB, said that by widening access to capital, FCMB was enabling entrepreneurs to create jobs, drive innovation, and strengthen local industries.
“Our partnership with British International Investment strengthens our ability to channel resources where they matter most, deepen financial access for underserved groups, and create pathways for long-term economic participation across the country,” she said.
Chris Chijiutomi, managing director and head of Africa at BII, said the investment would unlock opportunities for businesses in northern Nigeria where the DFI’s support was needed most.
“This aligns with our commitment to supporting MSMEs and women-led businesses that are key to creating jobs and accelerating inclusive prosperity across Nigeria,” he said. BII said the partnership was aligned with UN Sustainable Development Goal 5, on gender equality, and SDG 8, on decent work and economic growth.
The UK institution has been an active supporter of SME-linked lending in Nigeria over recent years. In mid-2024, for example, the DFI contributed $50m to a $295m syndicated loan facility arranged by Dutch development bank FMO for Access Bank, Nigeria’s largest lender by assets, with a similar objective of supporting underserved SMEs, including those led by women and young people.
