The 2026 Access to Financial Services in Nigeria (A2F) Survey, released by Enhancing Financial Innovation and Access (EFInA) on Wednesday, September 17, in Abuja, has revealed that approximately 61% of Nigerian adults are living under severe liquidity distress, even as access to formal financial services expands.
The survey shows that broadening financial inclusion has not yet translated into stronger financial outcomes for most Nigerians, with a significant gap between access and actual financial resilience.
How Nigerians Are Coping with Financial Shocks
Among adults who experienced a financial shock, 71.6% turned to fragile or erosive coping methods, while only 13.8% used protective or adaptive responses, according to the EFInA findings.
EFInA Chief Executive Officer Foyinsolami Akinjayeju reported that 51.2% of farmers experienced a financial shock, with 52.2% of those exposed relying on erosive coping methods and 76% left with residual distress.
Financial exclusion dropped to 21% nationally, but the burden fell heavily on the poorest Nigerians. About 53% of adults in the lowest wealth bracket remained financially excluded, compared with just 1% among the wealthiest. Nearly half of all excluded adults were in the poorest 20% of the population.
The survey also noted that geography alone did not account for the gap, with exclusion at 16% among middle-wealth Nigerians in both rural and urban settings.
Women's Inclusion Improves, But Gaps Remain
Formal inclusion among women business owners rose to 76.3% from 67.5%, and inclusion among women farmers climbed to 53.6% from 42.7%, according to EFInA data.
However, exclusion among dependent women increased to 52.2%, indicating persistent vulnerability in this group.
Digital Finance Grows But Credit Lags
Mobile money usage more than tripled to 38% in 2026, up from 12% in 2023, while overall digital financial usage rose to 64% from about 47%. Formal savings increased to 53% from 38%.
Despite these gains, formal credit held at 10%, insurance at 5%, and pension participation at roughly 9%. EFInA stated: "The findings point to a financial system that is helping Nigerians move and store money more effectively than it is helping them finance livelihoods or transfer risk."
Sanusi Warns Against Reversing Reforms
Former Central Bank of Nigeria Governor Sanusi Lamido Sanusi used the occasion to warn against undoing economic reforms, saying that policy reversals had repeatedly forced Nigeria to restart its reform cycle.
Sanusi said: "I think one of the sad things about the country is how easy it is to take 10 steps forward and then take 30 steps back."
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that Nigeria's Bank Verification Number (BVN) database reached 69,972,475 as of August 23, 2026, edging closer to the 70 million enrolment mark, according to data from the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS). Enrolments grew by 183,282 between August 3 and August 23, up from 63,336 additions recorded in the previous week.
The BVN database stood at around 69.55 million in early July and has climbed steadily since, reflecting continued formalisation of the financial sector.
