Media Insights Powering Nigeria’s Credit Decisions

Through investigative reports, market analyses, and news coverage, the media helps to uncover risks, spotlight trends, and validate data, empowering rating agencies to make informed, objective, and transparent assessments that support investor confidence and economic growth. This was the major thrust of a recent training seminar organised for select journalists by DataPro Limited in Lagos, Festus Akanbi reports

The preparations for the launch of the National Credit Guarantee Company in May 2025 to enhance credit access and drive economic growth in Nigeria are gathering momentum.

President Bola Tinubu had announced the initiative as part of his broader economic reform agenda, aiming to bolster financial inclusion and support underserved groups such as women and youth. Through the company, the government seeks to expand risk-sharing instruments for financial institutions, aiming to strengthen the financial system’s confidence and improve living standards.

In this vein, some analysts believe that the growth of a good credit culture in Nigeria in 2025 holds the transformative power to unlock unprecedented economic development, fuelling entrepreneurship, industrial expansion, and inclusive prosperity.

They argued that when individuals and businesses embrace the principles of creditworthiness—honouring obligations, maintaining transparency, and building trust—they lay the foundation for a robust financial ecosystem where access to capital becomes easier, cheaper, and more sustainable.

This was the kernel of a recent one-day seminar organised by DataPro Limited for journalists covering the nation’s financial sector.

Participants believed that a vibrant credit culture empowers Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to scale their operations, stimulates consumer spending through responsible borrowing, and enhances investor confidence in the financial system.

It was also believed that with improved credit behaviour, banks, and lending institutions can confidently extend credit, thereby deepening financial inclusion, spurring innovation, and accelerating job creation across sectors.

Not only this, it is also argued that the widespread adoption of a strong credit culture will ignite a ripple effect of productivity, resilience, and wealth creation, propelling Nigeria toward a more dynamic, equitable, and globally competitive economy.

Credit Culture

According to the Chief Operating Officer of DataPro, Mr. Oladele Adeoye, most of the conversations in 2025 will centre around the use of credits as pressures mount on the Nigerian government to move the economy forward.

“We want to underscore, even from a global perspective, that credit will always be the way to go. And it appears that the year 2025 is giving us a good narration around the use of credits. And what do I mean? The global outlook suggests that the global economy in terms of GDP in the year 2025 will grow at about 3.3%. And this is riding on the fact that, generically, interest rates are coming down and inflationary pressure is easing.”

The narration around the use of credits, according to him, will spur productivity and will rub off positively on access to funds needed to run businesses and the economy.

The Role of the Media

He, however, believed that the ensuing rush for credits had made it imperative for the media to join the structure to make the exercise a huge success.

“The budget for 2025 is an indication that even the federal government of Nigeria will also address some of the deficit borrowing based on debt. And as it is going to happen at the government level, we also expect that that will also happen at the corporate level. It therefore means one thing that one of the lookouts for is the fact that there will be a need for a credit rating.

“So this agency collected and sold information about credit creditworthiness of businesses. And so that suggests to you that the basic duty of a rating agency today is to give an opinion as to the creditworthiness of any business. To give an opinion as to the creditworthiness of any business.”

Adeoye said credit agencies in the country are already set for an increase in activities as banks and other sources of credit will mandatorily seek information on those seeking credit from them. He said, “And this is why I think as media personnel, we should begin to see ourselves as important components of the job function of a rating agency because part of the lookouts done by rating agency is the fact that we will also be paying attention to some of the stories you publish around these entities.

“You might not know, but every time you have a situation, for instance, if we’ve just rated a company and we have it in the public domain, somebody is talking about the fact that in the last six months, this company has not paid us in the last day, we might pick that. Even though it is gotten from the media, not from the rated entity, we might pick that and ask the company to meet with us.”

SEC’s Initiative

This initiative, according to him, is a result of the need to key into the vision of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for education and enlightenment of the investing public and that the media is at the forefront of driving this education.  So, to correctly disseminate information coming from the rating desk, the media itself must have a clear understanding of qualitative factors that a rating agency will readily consider in arriving at a rating opinion.

Speaking further on the link between the media and the work of credit rating agencies, Adeoye said, “Sometimes we could be in our office and while we are paying attention, we can stumble on the media reporting that a court has just given an injunction against a company and against some banks to put a lien on the accounts of those companies.

“That’s information for us. We have to call the company and ask questions because regulatory compliance is also part of what we look at. So we are asking, what regulatory requirements have you breached to bring you to this point? We need facts of the case.”

Reacting to questions, he stressed that as people access these credits, there will be a need for rating because the providers of the fund themselves are sometimes under regulatory and statutory obligation to only give the fund to those who meet certain rating criteria. He added that that was what those who work in the rating end refer to as an investment grade rating. “So on account of that, we expect that at both macro and micro levels, we are going to be looking at a situation whereby a fund will be raised from both the capital market and the money market.”

Adeoye defined credit rating as an opinion on the creditworthiness of an issuer, such as a corporation or government, based on their ability to meet their financial obligations, like repaying debts.

“It is an assessment of the ability of an issuer, that is anyone who wants to borrow, in a very simple language, even though in rating language, we refer to them as issuers of instruments, but what they are technically doing is that they want to borrow money,” he stated.

Adeoye warned that it is important for the entity seeking credits and the one giving not to substitute credit ratings for personal judgment. 

“And that’s why it may not be a perfect substitute for your judgment. When a credit rating agency is looking at an entity, the primary focus is whether, can borrow. Does he have that cash flow strength to repay his debts? And is that cash protected? Whether governance is protected, regulatory-protected, statutorily protected, environmentally protected, and so on. So we’ll look at it from those points of view.”

Adeoye explained why some organisations still burn their fingers even though they had relied on the advice of some credit rating agencies. A good rating agency can hardly do a good job without the support of the media.

According to him, “The rating will be fine on the balance sheet, will be fine on the income statement, will be fine on the notes to the account, and on the audited account. But some juicy details may not be available to us when making that decision.

“And this is where the media also play an important role. Somehow, the outcome of your investigative corporate investigations and the rest of them are a good avenue to help us in that space. And that is why we think it’s an important decision to have a handshake with a media member.”