Abstract:
Lending represents one of the core functions of commercial banking system. The essential role of banks in the
economy has been to intermediate funds between surplus and deficit economic units. In the process of carrying out this primary task, banks have found themselves performing a number of functions which include: the mobilization of savings, stimulation of investment and economic growth, assistance in resources allocation, boosting of international trade and promotion of the payment system. The few studies which have been conducted on bank lending in Nigeria focused on the pre-consolidation banking era. This study examines the effect of deposit volume on bank lending behaviour in the Nigerian post-consolidation banking period. The population of the study comprises the 22 deposit money banks operating in Nigeria as at December, 2012. Data were obtained from the audited annual reports of the 22 banks for the post-consolidation periodb of 2006-2012. The analysis was conducted using regression analysis with the aid of SPSS package. The results revealed a positive and significant relationship between deposit volume and loan and advances in the selected banks. The study recommends that future researchers should investigate other factors which may exert some influence on the lending behaviour deposit money banks in Nigeria beside deposit volume. Specifically, factors such as capitalization, interest rates, gross domestic product, and liquidity ratio were mentioned.
