Nigerian banks are steadily reducing their reliance on physical infrastructure, closing 476 branches and cash centers between 2022 and 2025. According to the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) 2025 Statistical Bulletin, this represents an 8.8% decline in the nation’s physical banking network over the three years.
The data reveals a sharp, deliberate consolidation. The number of physical banking locations dropped from 5,410 in 2022 to 5,373 in 2023, before falling more aggressively to 5,144 in 2024 and 4,934 in 2025. Notably, this contraction occurred even as the total number of operating banks in the country briefly increased, suggesting a strategic industry-wide pivot rather than a market exit. In fact, the years 2024 and 2025 alone accounted for roughly 92% of the total closures.
This digital migration, however, is not uniform across regions. Lagos recorded the largest absolute decline, shedding 158 locations (a 9.9% drop). Yet, it remains the undisputed hub of physical banking, still accounting for nearly 29% of all branches nationwide. Conversely, states like Ekiti experienced one of the steepest percentage declines, losing 46.7% of their network. The starkest disparities remain in regions where physical access was already scarce: as of 2025, Yobe had only 23 branches, Zamfara had 28, and Ebonyi had 32.
The driving force behind this trend is a combination of aggressive cost-cutting and a massive push toward electronic and alternative banking channels. Banks are actively pruning networks to keep only the most commercially viable locations, betting that customers will increasingly migrate to mobile and online platforms.
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Speaking at the 2026 CBN Fair in Lokoja, Hakama Sidi-Ali, Acting Director of the CBN’s Corporate Communications and Investor Relations Department, emphasized the critical need to support this transition for vulnerable demographics. Represented by Zubairu Salihu, Branch Controller of the CBN Lokoja Branch, she noted that alternative payment channels are particularly vital for “farmers, traders, small businesses and informal-sector operators who may have limited access to conventional banking services.”
The pattern suggests that banks are not simply leaving physical infrastructure nationwide, but rather recalibrating it. However, this strategic adjustment carries profound implications for financial inclusion.
As physical doors close, the challenge for Nigeria’s financial sector is no longer just about building better apps. It is about ensuring that the digital bridge is robust, accessible, and trusted enough to carry everyone across, especially those in remote regions where a bank branch was once the only tether to the formal economy.
Promise Idoko is Junior Reporter working with moderncrux He covers global politics and international affairs. Based in Nigeria,
