The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) sterilised over N3.57 trillion within three days as deposit money banks parked surplus cash in the CBN’s Standing Deposit Facility (SDF).
According to FMDQ, the SDF is a window where banks warehouse excess cash for an overnight interest rate of about 22.8 per cent.
The CBN’s financial data between Tuesday, February 17 and Thursday 19, 2026, shows the scale of liquidity management operations undertaken by the apex bank amid sustained high system balances and strong demand for government securities.
The aggressive liquidity mop-up followed banking system liquidity of over N4 trillion, which analysts at Coronation Research noted in their Nigeria Weekly Update released on Friday, February 13.
Despite the multi-trillion-naira absorptions through Open Market Operations (OMO) and primary market issuances, banks continued to channel significant funds into the SDF window.
System liquidity strengthened midweek, closing at N4.32 trillion on Friday, while SDF placements rose sharply from N2.52 trillion at the start of the week to N4.26 trillion.
The CBN recorded net liquidity absorption of about N435 billion on February 17 after OMO sales of N2.30 trillion were offset by N1.87 trillion in maturities.
On February 19, the CBN booked treasury bills and bond sales totalling N1.91 trillion against N765.89 billion in repayments, resulting in a net absorption of approximately N1.14 trillion.
Banks maintained nearly N3 trillion in daily SDF placements, including N3.35 trillion on February 17 and about N2.97 trillion on February 19, despite ongoing mop-up operations.
Combined direct market instruments accounted for about N1.57 trillion in withdrawals, while persistent SDF usage reinforced the scale of effective sterilisation across the system.
