On March 31, 2026, President Bola Tinubu announced that Nigeria had secured approval for a $5 billion loan from the United Arab Emirates’ First Abu Dhabi Bank, intended to finance critical infrastructure projects and support the expanded 2026 national budget. However, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently raised serious concerns about the loan because of its repayment methods, based on a derivative Total Return Swap structure. The Fund warned that that method of repayment is opaque and could expose Nigeria to hidden liabilities. [...]