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The short answer
The corridor is a band around the Monetary Policy Rate: banks can borrow overnight from the CBN at the Standing Lending Facility (SLF) rate at the top, and park spare cash at the Standing Deposit Facility (SDF) rate at the bottom. Since the 22 September 2026 MPC meeting the corridor is +50/−300 basis points around a 23% MPR, so the SLF is 23.5% and the SDF is 20%. It is called asymmetric because the gaps above and below are different.
How the two facilities work
- Standing Lending Facility (SLF)
- A bank short of cash at the end of the day borrows from the CBN overnight, against collateral, at MPR plus the upper margin.
- Standing Deposit Facility (SDF)
- A bank with spare cash deposits it with the CBN overnight and earns MPR minus the lower margin.
- Basis point (bp)
- One hundredth of a percentage point; 50bp is 0.5 points.
Because no bank needs to pay more than the SLF or accept less than the SDF, interbank overnight rates usually trade inside the corridor. The width and shape of the band are policy choices made by the MPC.
Current settings and recent history
| Meeting | MPR | Corridor | SLF | SDF |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb to Jul 2025 | 27.5% | +500/−100 | 32.5% | 26.5% |
| Sep 2025 | 27.0% | +250/−250 | 29.5% | 24.5% |
| Nov 2025 | 27.0% | +50/−450 | 27.5% | 22.5% |
| Feb to Jul 2026 | 26.5% | +50/−450 | 27.0% | 22.0% |
| Sep 2026 | 23.0% | +50/−300 | 23.5% | 20.0% |
Corridor settings are from the CBN's Monetary Policy Decisions page; SLF and SDF are calculated from them, and the September 2026 levels match those reported by Arise News on 22 September 2026. These are as at October 2026; the next MPC meeting may change them.
Why the shape matters
A wide gap above the MPR
In early 2025 the SLF sat 5 points above the MPR, making emergency borrowing from the CBN expensive. That pushed banks to manage their cash tightly and kept short-term rates high, a tightening setting.
A wide gap below the MPR
From November 2025 the corridor flipped: the SLF sat only 0.5 points above the MPR and the SDF 4.5 points below. Parking idle cash at the CBN became far less rewarding, nudging banks to lend it or buy securities instead. The September 2026 setting narrows the lower gap to 3 points.
Why the word 'reset' appeared in September 2026
The CBN's decisions page describes the September 2026 move as a reset of the MPR to 23% and a recalibration of the corridor to +50/−300. Both levers moved together: the policy rate fell by 3.5 points and the bottom of the band was pulled closer to it, from 4.5 points below to 3 points below. In practice, the floor for overnight deposits at the CBN fell from 22% to 20%, while the ceiling for overnight borrowing fell from 27% to 23.5%. Market rates such as Treasury bill stop rates fell in the auctions that followed, as banks repriced against the new band. When reading future decisions, look at both numbers, because the corridor can be changed without moving the MPR at all, as happened in November 2025.
Worked example
Example only. A bank has ₦10 billion spare overnight. At the SDF of 20% a year it earns about ₦5.48 million for one night (₦10 billion × 0.20 ÷ 365). Under the earlier 22% SDF it would have earned about ₦6.03 million. A bank short ₦10 billion and borrowing at the 23.5% SLF pays about ₦6.44 million for the night.
Why it matters beyond banks
- Overnight rates feed into Treasury bill yields and, over time, into savings and loan rates; see how an MPR change reaches you.
- A low SDF tends to push down short-term yields as banks hunt for returns elsewhere, as seen in Treasury bill auctions.
- Reading the corridor line in a communiqué tells you whether the CBN is leaning towards tighter or looser money; see how to read an MPC communiqué.
Questions people ask
What is the asymmetric corridor in CBN policy?
It is the band around the MPR within which overnight rates move, with different gaps above and below. As at October 2026 it is +50/−300 basis points.
What is the CBN standing lending facility rate now?
23.5%, being the 23% MPR plus 50 basis points, set at the 22 September 2026 MPC meeting.
What is the standing deposit facility rate in Nigeria?
20%, being the 23% MPR minus 300 basis points, from the September 2026 meeting. Check the CBN after each MPC for changes.
Can individuals use the SLF or SDF?
No. They are CBN facilities for banks. Individuals feel their effect through deposit, loan and Treasury bill rates.
Sources
- CBN: Monetary Policy Decisions · accessed Oct 2026
- Arise News: CBN cuts MPR to 23% from 26.5% as MPC revises policy (22 Sep 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
- Nairametrics: NTB stop rates crash across tenors after CBN's 350bps rate cut (24 Sep 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
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