Key Points

• NDIC collaboration with CIBN on emerging risks targets cybersecurity and climate challenges.

• NDIC and CIBN to launch joint training initiatives for bankers.

• Partnership aims to build resilience across Nigeria’s financial system.

The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has once again called for the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) to work more closely together to make the country’s financial sector stronger against new threats, such as cybersecurity threats, digital disruption, and environmental and market shocks.

Bello Hassan, the Managing Director and Chief Executive of the NDIC, made the request in Abuja when he met with a group from the CIBN, led by its President and Chairman of Council, Prof. Pius Olanrewaju, and members of the Institute’s governing council.

According to a report by the Punch news, Hassan said that the changing financial landscape calls for regulators, professionals, and academics to work together more closely to keep the banking industry strong. “We are seeing new risk frontiers, from new technologies in finance to the effects of climate change on credit risks. He said, “This partnership with the CIBN is not optional; it is necessary.”

Strengthening NDIC’s work with CIBN on new risks

The head of the NDIC said that the Corporation will work more closely with the CIBN to make professional training and technical skills better in the banking system. He said that the agency had already started updating its supervisory tools with predictive analytics, real-time data systems, and scenario-based stress testing to find possible weaknesses early on.

He stressed that the CIBN’s professional education platform is a great way to give risk managers and compliance officers the skills they need to keep up with the changing market. “Capacity development is the key to financial stability.” Hassan said, “The NDIC and CIBN must work together to build that capacity.”

Making banking risk management stronger

In response, Prof. Olanrewaju praised the NDIC’s work to protect depositors and manage crises, pointing out that the Corporation quickly stepped in to help several troubled microfinance and mortgage banks in 2024. He said that the CIBN was working on an Enterprise Risk and Compliance Academy that would open in 2026 and asked the NDIC to be a technical partner.

He said that the proposed academy would teach mid-level and senior banking executives about operational risk, cybersecurity, and strategies for sustainable finance. Olanrewaju said, “Regulation alone won’t make banking stable. It needs a culture of ethical leadership and ongoing learning.”

NDIC and CIBN working together to drive innovation

Prince Ayo Abdullahi, the NDIC’s Executive Director of Operations, also spoke at the event. He said that the Corporation would support CIBN’s upcoming National Banking Ethics Summit, which is meant to improve professional behaviour and accountability in all financial institutions.

Also, financial experts have praised the move as timely. Dr. Uche Uwaleke, a Professor of Finance and the former head of the Chartered Institute of Bankers’ Abuja Branch, said the partnership “signals a proactive step towards a stronger, more digitally aware banking ecosystem.”

Analysts say that the NDIC working with CIBN on new risks will be very important for protecting depositors, encouraging innovation, and building public trust in Nigeria’s changing financial system.