EFInA survey records stronger gains among women entrepreneurs and farmers, but trust remains key to deeper financial participation…..
Formal access to credit in Nigeria has nearly doubled to 10 percent, signalling a gradual shift towards regulated financial services as more Nigerians, particularly women entrepreneurs and farmers, gain access to formal channels.
The latest Access to Financial Services in Nigeria Survey by Enhancing Financial Innovation and Access, EFInA, also showed that overall formal financial inclusion has climbed to 73 percent, representing an estimated 87.2 million adults across the country.
The 2026 A2F Survey, conducted in partnership with the National Bureau of Statistics, covered all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, with more than 18,600 interviews carried out between April and June.
The findings point to notable progress among women, who have historically faced greater barriers to accessing formal financial services.
Formal financial inclusion among women business owners rose from 67.5 percent to 76.3 percent, while the rate among women farmers increased from 42.7 percent to 53.6 percent.
The figures suggest that more women operating businesses and farms are becoming connected to formal financial institutions, creating greater opportunities for savings, payments and access to financing.
For fintech firm Moniepoint, however, expanding access to credit will require lenders to rethink how they assess borrowers, particularly those whose businesses may not have conventional collateral.
The company said cash-flow-based lending could help bridge the gap by assessing borrowers according to the movement and performance of money through their businesses rather than relying mainly on traditional security requirements.
It said the approach could be particularly useful for underserved entrepreneurs, including women involved in trade and agriculture.
Moniepoint said the rise in formal credit represents an important development in Nigeria’s financial inclusion journey, although more progress is needed to meet the country’s National Financial Inclusion Strategy target of 40 percent formal credit penetration.
While access to financial services is expanding, the survey highlighted another factor that could determine whether Nigerians continue to use them: trust.
According to the findings, 96.9 percent of adults who said they trusted their financial service providers had carried out at least one financial transaction in the preceding 90 days.
That compared with just 65.6 percent among adults who lacked trust in their providers — a difference of 31.3 percentage points.
The result highlights the connection between confidence in financial institutions and sustained participation in the formal financial system.
Moniepoint Co-founder and Group Chief Executive Officer, Tosin Eniolorunda, said simply making financial services available would not be enough if consumers lacked confidence in the institutions providing them.
Eniolorunda said trust had remained a central part of the company’s approach, adding that 83 percent of its users reported an improvement in their quality of life, while 85 percent said they had become more confident about achieving their financial goals.
He said the figures reinforced the importance of combining financial access with reliable services that enable consumers to manage their money and improve their economic stability.
Speaking on behalf of Moniepoint at the launch of the survey, the company’s Vice President of Corporate Affairs, Edidiong Uwemakpan, described the A2F Survey as an important benchmark for measuring financial inclusion in Nigeria and across Africa.
She said the latest findings should encourage fintech companies, commercial banks and policymakers to move beyond simply expanding access and develop products that respond more closely to the realities of underserved Nigerians.
Uwemakpan said the survey data would help shape Moniepoint’s next phase of inclusive lending, particularly for entrepreneurs and women operating in the trade and agricultural sectors.
She added that the company would continue working with EFInA and financial-sector regulators to translate the findings into practical solutions capable of expanding access to credit and other formal financial services.
The A2F Survey has served as a benchmark for tracking financial inclusion in Nigeria since 2008. Its 2026 edition provides insight into how Nigerians save, borrow, make payments and manage financial risks.
With formal financial inclusion now reaching 73 percent, the latest findings point to substantial progress. But the gap between access and meaningful use particularly in formal credit means the next challenge will be ensuring that more Nigerians can not only enter the financial system, but also obtain affordable and reliable services that support their businesses and livelihoods.
