The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reduced the stop rate on the one-year Nigerian Treasury Bill (NTB) to 16.84%, its lowest level since June 3, 2026, despite strong investor demand for the government debt instrument.
At the Treasury Bills primary market auction held on Wednesday, September 2, the apex bank allotted N865.71 billion, exceeding the N700 billion initially offered to investors.
The auction attracted total subscriptions of N3.35 trillion, representing about 4.8 times the amount on offer. Demand was heavily concentrated on the 364-day bill, which received N3.238 trillion in bids against an offer of N500 billion.
The CBN eventually allotted N762.17 billion on the one-year instrument, N262.17 billion above the advertised amount, while cutting its stop rate by 31 basis points from 17.15% recorded at the August 26 auction.
The latest reduction marks the second consecutive cut in the one-year NTB rate. The rate has now declined by a cumulative 75 basis points from 17.59% at the August 12 auction.
Demand for the shorter-tenor instruments was significantly weaker. The 91-day bill attracted N76.82 billion against N100 billion offered, with N76.28 billion allotted at a 16.30% stop rate.
Similarly, the 182-day bill received only N33.51 billion in subscriptions against an N100 billion offer, while N27.27 billion was allotted at a 16.50% stop rate.
The 364-day instrument accounted for approximately 96.7% of total subscriptions at the auction, underscoring investors’ continued preference for longer-dated government securities.
The latest decline reverses the upward trend recorded earlier in the year, when the one-year NTB rate rose from 16.35% at the June 3 auction to 17.70% in July before remaining elevated through much of August.
The development could also strengthen expectations of a broader easing in interest rates ahead of the CBN’s next Monetary Policy Committee meeting, as investors continue to monitor the direction of monetary policy.
For investors, however, the 16.84% stop rate remains relatively attractive, particularly compared with the shorter-tenor instruments, even as the CBN’s latest auction signals a gradual decline in yields.
