As Non-Performing Loans (NPLs) in the banking sector ballooned to N1.3 trillion as of last November, lenders are raising the red flag that the humongous debts are crippling their operations, putting them under the risk of regulatory forbearance or systemic failure as recovery efforts are hampered by inefficiencies of the system.

Lamenting this scenario recently, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Deputy Governor in charge of Financial System Stability, Mrs. Aisha Ahmad, decried some bank customers penchant for defaulting on their loans, blaming the trend for poor credit growth in the country.

“Now we are not unaware of some of the challenges or reasons why credit have not been growing. Part of that is the appetite of banks to lend especially when you have customers that willfully refuse to repay their loans” she said.

Also voicing his concern for this ugly development, Managing Director of Bank of Industry (BoI), Mr Olukayode Pitan, recently blamed some local entrepreneurs’ habit of not wanting to repay loans taken from lenders, stressing that his bank’s non-performing loan portfolio awarded to entrepreneurs ranges between 80 and 100 per cent.