Samson Echenim 
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is set to conduct a Treasury Bills auction on Wednesday, offering ₦81 billion for subscription. This marks a relatively modest offer compared to recent auctions, which have seen strong investor demand.
Market analysts anticipate tighter liquidity conditions in the money market this week, as the CBN may also conduct an Open Market Operations (OMO) auction to refinance maturing instruments. If both auctions are held, the CBN could withdraw a total of ₦345 billion from the system through T-bill and OMO sales.
OMO bills worth ₦264 billion are due to mature this week. Without a refinancing auction, the inflows from these maturities could boost excess liquidity and potentially lower short-term interest rates. However, analysts expect the CBN to maintain its tightening stance by conducting an OMO auction to absorb the liquidity.
The CBN has remained aggressive in its liquidity management efforts. Recent trends suggest that two primary market auctions will likely take place this week, aligning with the Bank’s continued monetary tightening posture.
At the previous Treasury bills auction, the CBN offered ₦450 billion—split across ₦50 billion for 91-day, ₦100 billion for 182-day, and ₦300 billion for 364-day tenors. The auction saw strong demand, with total subscriptions rising to ₦1.31 trillion from ₦1.17 trillion at the prior auction, pushing the bid-to-offer ratio to 2.9x from 2.3x.
The Debt Management Office (DMO) allotted the full amount on offer, with stop rates closing at 17.98% for the 91-day (slightly down from 18.00%), 18.50% for the 182-day (unchanged), and 19.35% for the 364-day (down from 19.56%).
Additionally, the CBN reinforced its tight policy stance last week with a ₦600 billion OMO auction. Demand reached ₦1.529 trillion, and the Bank allotted ₦1.512 trillion—demonstrating continued strong investor interest in short-term instruments.
