Treasury Bills: Bank customers show growing interest despite limited knowledge

Despite growing interest in Treasury Bills among bank customers, limited knowledge of how the investment works remains a major barrier to wider participation, findings from interviews with some bank customers in Lagos have shown.

While some customers said they were familiar with Treasury Bills and had invested in them, others said they had little or no knowledge of the investment. Some also cited inadequate funds and competing financial priorities as reasons for not investing.

Treasury Bills are short-term debt securities issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, on behalf of the Federal Government to raise funds. Investors effectively lend money to the government for a specified period, usually 91, 182 or 364 days, and earn a return.

For Miss Idibofu Anita, a customer of Access Bank in AmuwoOdofin, Lagos, Treasury Bills are not entirely unfamiliar.