CBN cuts staff costs by N193B via early exit program but currency expenses surge in 2025
The Central Bank of Nigeria reduced personnel expenses by N193.14 billion (32.4%) to N402.76 billion in 2025 through its voluntary Early Exit Programme under Governor Olayemi Cardoso. At Group level, staff costs fell N192.29 billion (31.6%) to N416.26 billion. The biggest drop came from other staff expenses plummeting from N305.52 billion to N86.27 billion for the Bank, while wages and salaries decreased only slightly from N44.49 billion to N43.92 billion.
However, these savings were overwhelmed by surging costs elsewhere. Currency issue expenses jumped 83.8% to N579.21 billion (N176.45 billion more than personnel costs), and other operating expenses exploded to N1.56 trillion from N248.31 billion. Total operating costs more than doubled to N2.60 trillion despite lower payroll. Employee benefit liabilities also rose sharply to N206.09 billion due to increased post-employment gratuity obligations.
The CBN still reported profits of N86.81 billion (Bank) and N136.44 billion (Group) in 2025, up from N38.84 billion previously. With 1,000 staff having exited voluntarily as part of tech-driven restructuring, does this currency-focused spending shift reflect necessary operational costs or misplaced priorities as the Bank pursues its transformation agenda?