President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has shown remarkable courage and clarity in steering our country through difficult but necessary reforms. In that same spirit of boldness, the Central Bank Governor, Mr. Yemi Cardoso, has been nothing short of exceptional. FirstBank, the commercial banking arm of First HoldCo Plc, has met the ₦500 billion minimum capital base required by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for an international banking licence. The shareholders of FirstHoldco are committed to injecting additional capital into its existing subsidiaries and new business adjacencies. I say this without hesitation: Yemi Cardoso is the best Central Bank Governor Nigeria has ever produced.

Source: Punch January 02, 2026 07:47 UTC