The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has dismissed a viral social media report claiming that billionaire businessman Razaq Okoya was set to acquire Polaris Bank following an alleged liquidation process.
The rumour, which spread widely on X (formerly Twitter), suggested that Polaris Bank had failed to meet the CBN’s recapitalisation requirements and would be taken over by the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) for liquidation, with Okoya reportedly making a bid to acquire the bank and restore compliance.
Reacting swiftly, the CBN debunked the claims, describing the report as false and misleading. The apex bank urged the public to disregard the information and rely only on verified sources.
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“This content is fake. Let the public be guided. The Nigerian Banking System is Safe and Secure,” the CBN stated.
The clarification comes amid the ongoing recapitalization exercise introduced by the CBN in March 2024, which gave commercial banks a two-year window to meet new minimum capital requirements by March 31, 2026.
Under the policy, international commercial banks were required to raise a minimum capital base of ₦500 billion, national commercial banks ₦200 billion, and regional banks ₦50 billion, among other categories.
The exercise was designed to strengthen financial stability, improve resilience, and enhance lending capacity within the banking sector.
Following the conclusion of the recapitalization deadline in April 2026, the CBN confirmed that 33 banks successfully met the new capital requirements, collectively raising about ₦4.65 trillion to support economic growth and cushion against financial shocks.
