NGX Chairman Umaru Kwairanga credits reforms, technology, and major listings for transformative market growth this year.

Chairman of the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX), Umaru Kwairanga, said the Nigerian capital market has recorded transformative growth by the end of 2025, with market capitalization nearly doubling to over ₦95 trillion, and plans already underway to surpass ₦100 trillion before year-end.

In an interview with ARISE NEWS on Monday, Kwairanga highlighted the strategic reforms, technology adoption, and corporate actions that underpinned the market’s robust performance.

“Assess the performance of the Nigerian capital market in 2025, I would say it’s very good. Evaluation has been transformative. I want to take us back a phase before we can talk about the 2026, which is going to be much, much, much better,” Kwairanga said.

“First of all, as I just said, our market capitalization is over 95 trillion. The oil share index has risen by over 45 percent. Our primary market is back. Volumes have increased. Values have increased. So, several strategic factors have brought all this achievement that we have done in 2025 before we talk of the 2026.

“First of all, as we mentioned, the current government reforms have gone a long way in changing and bringing back the confidence into our market. There’s the issue of the banking capitalization. There’s good corporate actions, performance of organizations that bring you good results. Declaring good dividend, internal dividend, scripts. All these things that we have gotten in 2025. And above all, our own strategic initiatives to bring technology into the current engines.

“So, so many factors have come into play for us to achieve what we have achieved. When we look where we are coming from, we have doubled the banking capitalization only in 2025. As of this time last year, we were less than 50 trillion. Today, we are over 95 trillion. And I want to assure you that before the end of this year, our target is 100 trillion. And that will continue.”

Kwairanga attributed much of the growth to technology and market accessibility:

“Let me break down those factors briefly for you to see the reason why I’m saying that. Let me start with the issue of the technology. What we have done, we look at our processes and procedures. We have the statistics section. We say that this market cannot continue that way. We have to look at our listing requirements.

“How can we make things to be easier, simpler for investors to invest in the Nigerian capital market? How can we attract more companies to come and be listed on the Nigerian Exchange? And that has gone a long way by the issue of technology.

“What we did is to bring a platform that we call NTS Invest today. That you can use your gadgets from the comfort of your home to invest in the Nigerian capital market today. And that is the magic of the success of the banking capitalization that we have achieved this year.

“This year alone, over 3 trillion has been raised in this market by banks to make up the remaining 3 trillion of our capitalization. And this is very huge when you look at where we are coming from.”

Kwairanga also pointed to retail participation as a key driver:

“We are coming from a population of over 200 million. You can’t believe it. We have less than 1 billion retail investors in this country. As of today, we have over 6 billion retail investors. If you can see the job that we have done, what is the magic? The magic is all these initiatives that we have brought. We have restructured our work.

“We brought in some new faces into the world. We brought in new management. We brought in technology. We simplified our processes and procedures that have really worked for us at NTS.”

Looking ahead, Kwairanga expressed optimism about 2026 and the potential impact of major listings:

“2026, I want to show you, is going to be much, much better. Ruben has mentioned when he was opening that it’s been projected that we are going to reach $262 trillion. And this has been confirmed by so many analysts, local and international. Mr. Mariwani already said he has done this analysis at the local business school. But let me tell you, for me, in fact, it’s underestimated.

“We have doubled our market capitalization in 2025 from less than $50 trillion to almost $100 trillion today. We are one of the top, best-performing markets in the world as of today. 2026 is going to be only better.

“Today, you have mentioned the issue of Dangote. Dangote is a game-changer. By the time we have gone far in the processes of listing the fertilizer, first of all, there are two different refineries from Dangote.

“We are meeting in discussions with Dangote and his team throughout this year. And we have already gone far in the first quarter. We hope and believe that we are going to list the Dangote fertilizer.

“Dangote fertilizer will take us from $100 trillion to close to $150 trillion, which is almost 50% of our market today. By the time we bring the big one, the Dangote refinery itself, that one of the analysis that Ruben has made will take us to over $200 trillion.

“But we are not stopping there. We are already in discussions with the government to look at all those companies, all those organizations under MOFI, Ministry of Fertilizer Incorporated, under PPE. There is already a team, there is a committee.

“We are NGS, we are members of that committee. We have picked 15 companies today so that we can be able to see what are the corporate governance, what do they have on ground, how can we be able to branch them out by training, by providing more information so that they can be able to meet our listing requirements at NGS.

“Thank you for your time. So that will go a long way to make sure that for us, if we are coming from less than $30 trillion at the beginning of this administration, today we are almost $100 trillion in less than three years.

“I want to assure you, what we have put on ground are the macroeconomic indices, and all this reform, especially the effects. And when you look at where we are coming from, it has come to the time that whatever we are going to tell foreign investors, once they still don’t have a way of exit, they cannot come here and invest when they cannot be able to repatriate, even their dividend, regardless of their own capital.”

On challenges such as capital gains tax and attracting tech unicorns, Kwairanga said:

“Today, as of last week, we have changed our settlement cycle from T plus 1 to T plus 2. We are making it shorter for investors to sell their own shares and get their own funds. Today, you can be able to sell your own bonds and buy equities. Because before, equities have T plus 3, bonds have T plus 2. We have converted. Today, the only market that is T plus 1 is the New York market.

“The second one is at par with us in London and other European markets. South Africa is still T plus 3. I’m telling you with the potential we have, with the leadership we have today, with the funds we have… We have the technology to do that.”

He also reassured that the market’s growth is sustainable:

“The gains that you have talked about so well… it’s something sustainable. And you can quote me. If you see where we are coming from, where we have invested, and the type of leadership we have.

“By December… do you see anything new? The issue of companies today rushing to see how they can be able to solve their own effects… we are past the level of basic challenges. Today when you go to my state… agenda projects, industrial parks, health sector initiatives, these are all part of the gains of those reforms.” (Arise News)

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