The Federal government has increased its domestic borrowing target for the third quarter of 2026 by 241 percent year-on-year, with plans to raise N5.8 trillion through Treasury Bills (TBs) to support budget financing.
The borrowing programme, released by the Central Bank of Nigeria, is significantly higher than the N1.76 trillion raised through Treasury Bills during the corresponding period of 2025.
According to the apex bank’s Nigeria Treasury Bills Issue Programme for Q3 2026, the issuance commenced on July 1 and will run until September 23, while settlement dates span from July 2 to September 24.
Treasury Bills are short-term debt instruments with maturities of less than one year, issued by the Central Bank on behalf of the Federal government to finance budgetary needs. They are also used by the apex bank as a monetary policy tool to regulate liquidity and manage the money supply within the economy.
The sharp increase in planned Treasury Bills issuance underscores the government’s growing reliance on the domestic debt market to finance its 2026 budget, amid sustained fiscal pressures and rising funding requirements.
The programme is expected to attract strong interest from banks, pension fund administrators, asset managers and other institutional investors, given the role of Treasury Bills as one of Nigeria’s most liquid fixed-income instruments.
The expanded borrowing plan also comes as the government continues to balance financing needs with efforts to contain debt servicing costs while supporting fiscal operations. The pace of Treasury Bills issuance is expected to remain an important indicator of domestic borrowing strategy and liquidity management throughout the second half of the year.