Nigerians still love cash: money outside banks has doubled since 2023 to ₦4.9trn

The amount of cash Nigerians hold outside the banking system has roughly doubled in three years, according to figures from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Currency outside banks stood at ₦4.923 trillion in September 2026, up from ₦2.416 trillion in September 2023, a rise of about 104 per cent. Most of the jump came in the first year, when the figure climbed 66 per cent to just over ₦4 trillion. Growth has since slowed to around 10 to 11 per cent a year.

Over the same period, demand deposits held in banks rose by about 71 per cent, from ₦22.9 trillion to ₦39.1 trillion.

The figures, from the CBN's money and credit statistics, suggest cash remains central to everyday life even as mobile banking, transfers and POS machines spread across the country.

Analysts caution that the numbers alone do not explain why. Inflation, economic growth, informal trade and changing payment habits could all be playing a part.