NICA urges businesses to embrace credit ready culture
NICA urges businesses to embrace credit ready culture
The National Institute of Credit Administration (NICA) has urged Nigerian businesses to become credit-ready and creditworthy to access funding in the emerging liberal economy.
Prof. Chris Onalo, Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of NICA, made the call in a statement issued on Sunday in Lagos.
NICA is the statutory professional body for the control, supervision and regulation of the credit management profession in Nigeria.
Onalo said credit had become a primary driver of growth in the new economic order.
He said access to credit would increasingly depend on businesses demonstrating their ability to manage and repay funds, rather than relying solely on connections, collateral or political patronage.
The registrar identified conscientiousness, trustworthiness, honesty and integrity as the four cardinal virtues required to build creditworthiness.
He explained that conscientiousness involved diligent record keeping, financial discipline and fulfilling obligations as and when due, while trustworthiness required businesses to build reputations that would inspire confidence among partners and financiers.
According to Onalo, honesty requires truthful disclosure in financial statements, loan applications and business dealings, while integrity entails maintaining ethical standards even when no one is watching.
He said the qualities were no longer merely moral ideals but had become crucial requirements for accessing financial and business-to-business credit.
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He noted that banks had been recapitalised, Development Finance Institutions were deploying funds, while suppliers were offering trade credit.
“Capital will only flow to those who can be trusted to manage it and return it,” he said.
Onalo warned businesses against maintaining opaque books and engaging in dishonest dealings, saying the emerging economy would reward transparency and punish recklessness.
He said a poor credit reputation could severely damage a business, while a strong credit reputation could become its greatest asset.
Onalo added that NICA deploying systems, education and certification to measure and attest to creditworthiness.
He said its CreditAcademy was available to equip Nigerians with the technical competence and ethical grounding required to operate successfully in the credit-driven economy.
He urged business owners, traders, MSMEs, corporate organisations and entrepreneurs to reposition their operations and build businesses trusted by banks, suppliers and the nation.
