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The short answer
FirstBank's treasury bills page says primary-market bids start at ₦50,001,000, in multiples of ₦1,000, with 91, 182 and 364-day tenors, and that secondary-market bills run from 7 to 363 days. The page does not publish a retail minimum, a form or online steps, so the route is through your account officer or FirstContact: confirm the minimum and rate, sign a written instruction and debit authority, and fund the account.
What FirstBank's own page confirms
First Bank of Nigeria (FirstBank) describes treasury bills on a page in the business treasury section of its website. The page is undated and general: it explains what T-bills are and who can hold them, rather than how a personal customer places an order. If you are new to T-bills altogether, start with our guide to buying treasury bills in Nigeria, then come back for the FirstBank route. These are the points the page states:
- Issuer
- The CBN, on behalf of the Federal Government of Nigeria
- Primary-market minimum
- ₦50,001,000, in multiples of ₦1,000
- Primary tenors
- 91, 182 and 364 days
- Secondary-market tenors
- 7 to 363 days
- Who can invest
- Individuals, firms, companies and financial institutions
- Pricing
- Issued at a discount and repaid at par (face value) on maturity
- Other uses
- Can be used as collateral; described as liquid and negotiable
The page also shows a secondary-market minimum, but the figure is printed as "N50,001,00.00", which is not a valid amount. Do not read it as ₦500,000 or ₦5 million; ask the bank what its current secondary-market minimum is. The page also says T-bills "do not yield interest" while listing "interest received" as tax-free, which reflects the fact that your return comes as a discount rather than a coupon. Do not rely on that tax-free label: an October 2025 directive applies 10% withholding tax to interest on short-term securities, including T-bills (KPMG, December 2025). See are treasury bill returns taxed.
What the page does not tell you
There is no retail application form, no fee schedule and no online purchase menu described on the page we checked. That does not mean FirstBank will not sell you a bill; it means the details sit with your account officer or the treasury team, and you should get them in writing. In particular, ask:
- What is the smallest face value you will sell me today, and is it a secondary-market bill or a share of a pooled auction bid?
- What rate applies, and is it quoted as a discount rate or a yield?
- What fees apply: transaction, custody, commission, VAT?
- What document do I sign, and what confirmation do I receive?
- Can the bills be held in my own name, and what happens at maturity if I give no instruction?
Nairametrics, writing in 2018 about bank T-bill bids in general, described the three ways banks serve smaller savers: a direct bid for those with about ₦50 million or more, pooling smaller orders with other investors (with some banks setting their own pooling minimums as high as ₦1 million), or selling rediscounted bills bought back from other investors, often at a slightly lower rate. Those figures are old and not FirstBank-specific, but the questions they raise are the ones to put to the bank.
Steps to buy through FirstBank
- Contact your account officer at your branch, or FirstContact. TechCabal's May 2026 list gives 0700-347-782-668-228 and firstcontact@firstbanknigeria.com.
- Ask for today's rates for the tenor you want and the current minimum.
- Write a signed instruction: your name, account number, face value or amount, tenor, and authority to debit your account.
- Fund the account with at least the discounted price before the deadline the bank gives you.
- Sign any custody or confirmation documents the bank provides, and keep your confirmation showing face value, rate and maturity date.
For a primary-auction bill, timing matters. Auctions usually hold every two weeks on Wednesdays unless the CBN advises otherwise, according to Stanbic IBTC's FAQ, and your instruction has to reach the bank before its own cut-off. Secondary bills can usually be bought on any working day at the bank's quoted rate. Our guide to primary versus secondary market T-bills explains the difference in more detail.
Worked example: a ₦1 million, 364-day bill
Example only, with an assumed discount rate of 18% a year and a 365-day year. The real rate is the one FirstBank quotes on the day.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Face value repaid at maturity | ₦1,000,000.00 |
| Discount: 1,000,000 × 18% × 364 ÷ 365 | ₦179,506.85 |
| Price you pay now | ₦820,493.15 |
| Annualised return on ₦820,493.15 | about 21.94% |
Notice how far apart the two rates are on a one-year bill. The discount is worked out on face value, but you only pay the discounted price, so the return on your money is higher than the quoted rate. Any fees reduce it slightly; see stop rate versus true yield for the full method.
Business and corporate customers
Because FirstBank's page sits in its business treasury section and names firms, companies and financial institutions as eligible, a company account holder can ask its relationship manager for the same service. Ask what authorisation the bank needs from your company before it debits the account for an investment, and who on your mandate must sign the instruction. Our article on T-bills for a business account covers this in more depth.
Where Pryme fits
Pryme does not sell treasury bills. If your naira is in Pryme, you can send it to your FirstBank account ahead of the bank's cut-off. For money you want to keep in the app, Savings Boxes show their rates before you commit.
Questions people ask
What is the minimum amount for treasury bills in First Bank?
FirstBank's page gives ₦50,001,000 for primary-market bids. Its secondary-market minimum is misprinted, so ask your account officer for the current figure.
Can I buy First Bank treasury bills on FirstMobile?
The FirstBank page we checked does not describe an app or online T-bill purchase. Ask FirstContact whether the app offers it today.
What tenors does First Bank offer for T-bills?
The page lists 91, 182 and 364 days in the primary market, and 7 to 363 days in the secondary market.
Is First Bank treasury bill interest paid monthly?
No. T-bills are bought at a discount and repaid at face value at maturity, as FirstBank's page states.
Sources
- FirstBank: Treasury Bills (business treasury page, undated) · accessed Oct 2026
- Nairametrics: How to bid for this week's Treasury Bills sale (2 Oct 2018) · accessed Oct 2026
- TechCabal: Customer care numbers for banks and fintechs in Nigeria (22 May 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
- Stanbic IBTC: Treasury Bills FAQs (undated PDF; indicative rates shown as at 4 Aug 2023) · accessed Oct 2026
- KPMG TaxNewsFlash: Nigeria guidance on withholding tax on interest from short-term securities (4 Dec 2025) · accessed Oct 2026
This article is general information, not financial, legal or tax advice. Products described are provided under the terms on this site and are subject to regulation and eligibility.