FG Won’t Publish Breakdown Of $5bn FAB Loan, Says Finance Minister Oyedele

The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, *Taiwo Oyedele*, has rejected calls for the Federal Government to publish details of how it plans to spend funds drawn from its *$5 billion* financing facility with *First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB)*.

Oyedele said the transaction had been subjected to unnecessary scrutiny, arguing that the facility was approved by the National Assembly and was structured to help the government refinance more expensive debt.

He spoke on Wednesday during a media briefing in Abuja.

The Federal Government recently drew about *$1.5 billion*, the first tranche of the $5 billion Total Return Swap facility arranged with FAB, despite concerns from the *International Monetary Fund (IMF)* and *Fitch Ratings* over transparency and risks associated with such financing structures.

The $5 billion facility was approved by the National Assembly on *March 31, 2026*. The initial drawdown is expected to support the 2026 budget, infrastructure projects and the refinancing of existing debt obligations.

*“There’s Nothing Special About That Loan”*

Responding to questions on the borrowing plan, Oyedele said the government would publish information on how it spends public funds but questioned why the FAB facility was receiving special attention.

“We will not publish how we are spending it. We will publish how we spend government money. There’s nothing special about that loan,” he said.

“Nobody has asked us whether we’re going to publish the money we took from the World Bank, whether we publish the one from Eurobond, whether we publish the one from Sukuk. Why is this one special?”

Oyedele also dismissed suggestions that the transaction was conducted without due process, noting that it had been presented to the National Assembly and the Federal Executive Council (FEC).

“The loan was approved not only by FEC, it was taken to National Assembly. What else can be more public than what you gave to the National Assembly?” he said.

The minister said the government was accessing the funds in phases to avoid incurring unnecessary costs.

“We’re assessing it in phases. You don’t want to take all the money at once because if you don’t spend it at once, you incur cost on the extra amount you’ve taken,” he said.

He explained that the FAB facility was different from Nigeria’s traditional fixed-rate borrowing because it had a flexible interest rate.

“We’re used to raising bonds on fixed interest rate terms. Our Eurobond, for example, was raised when the coupon was double digits. Today, our yield is down to around 7 to 7.5 per cent,” Oyedele said.

“This FAB transaction is flexible rates. It means if rates go up, we pay more. If rates come down, we benefit more. The all-in rate for this transaction is lower than our existing portfolio.”

He added that the primary objective was to refinance more expensive debt and reduce the government’s borrowing costs.

“So the objective is to use it to refinance expensive debt so you can save money,” he said.

Under the arrangement, the Federal Government is required to pledge securities worth about *133 per cent* of the amount drawn as collateral.

The IMF and Fitch Ratings had raised concerns about the financing structure, including issues around transparency and sovereign debt risks. The IMF warned that derivative financing structures such as total return swaps could be difficult to track in real time. Fitch also warned the arrangement could increase sovereign debt risks.

Oyedele said the government would soon publish Frequently Asked Questions on the transaction to provide further clarification.

“In the next few days, you will see on the website of both the Ministry of Finance and DMO the frequently asked questions about this particular debt, just so everybody can please themselves,” he said.

“There is nothing special about this loan, despite the attention it has received from critics and international media,” he added.