By Ikugbadi Oluwasegun
The Monetary Policy Committee of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has retained the benchmark interest rate at 26.5 per cent for the second time.

Olayemi Cardoso, CBN Governor, announced the decision on Tuesday at the end of the committee’s 306th meeting in Abuja.
Cardoso said the Committee decided to retain the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) at 26.5 per cent. Apparently, interest rate remains high.
The move follows an earlier meeting hold at the previous MPC briefing, and a 50-basis-point cut announced in February 2026.