Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) was established in 1956, known then as the Nigerian Building Society (NBS), a joint venture of the Commonwealth Development Corporation and the Federal and Eastern Governments of Nigeria. Following the introduction of the Indigenization Policy, the Federal Government, by Indigenization Act [1973], acquired the NBS and consequently renamed it the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN).

In 1994, FMBN assumed the status of an apex mortgage institution in Nigeria with the promulgation of the FMBN Act 82 [1993] and the Mortgage Institutions Act 53 [1989]. It also commenced the management and administration of the contributory savings scheme known as the National Housing Fund (NHF) established by Act 3 of [1992]. The National Housing Fund (NHF) is a social savings scheme designed to mobilize long-term funds from Nigerian workers, banks, insurance companies and the Federal Government to advance concessionary loans to contributors.

In fulfilling its mandate, the Bank is to also float capital market instruments such as Mortgage-Backed Bonds and Mortgage-Backed Securities for sale to institutional investors, such as pension funds, insurance companies, securities companies and banks, to raise long term funds for its secondary mortgage lending activities. This is to ensure a sustainable supply of liquidity to finance first home mortgage loan originations.

Following the reform of the Nigerian housing sector, FMBN was restructured into a Federal Government-Sponsored Enterprise (FGSE) with more focus on its secondary mortgage and capital market functions. FMBN is shifting operational emphasis to expand its functions from solely social housing on-lending under the NHF, to other areas of business including commercial on-lending for housing, refinancing of commercial mortgages created by mortgage loan originators, mortgage purchasing and warehousing and mortgage-backed securitization.

The Bank's current business model targets partnerships with local and international organisations with financial and technical capacity, interested in delivering affordable mass housing for the low income end of the market.