The Nigerian stock market has seen a significant surge in foreign portfolio inflows, reaching N748.23 billion in four years, from 2021 to August 2025.
This represents a 506% increase from N123.46 billion in the same period of 2021. According to the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), the value of transactions executed by foreign investors increased to N1.718 trillion as of August 2025, a 541% increase from N262.85 billion in 2021.
The NGX report highlights that domestic transactions dominated the market, accounting for about 85% of total trading volume, while foreign transactions made up about 15%. Market analysts attribute the surge in foreign portfolio inflows to growing confidence in the Nigerian equities market, driven by policy adjustments, liquidity improvements, and rising local investor participation.
In terms of specific numbers, domestic retail investors’ transactions increased by 475.8% to N2.332 trillion in 2025 from N404.77 billion in 2021. Meanwhile, domestic institutional investors’ transactions grew by 473.3% to N3.130 trillion against N545.99 billion in 2021. Total transactions at the nation’s bourse increased significantly by 240.8% to N6.916 trillion as of August 2025 from N1.213 trillion in 2021.
The NGX noted that long-term trends further underline the growing importance of the domestic market. Over the last 18 years, domestic transactions on NGX rose 33.15% from N3.556 trillion in 2007 to N4.735 trillion in 2024, while foreign transactions grew 38.31% from N616 billion to N852 billion over the same period.
Experts believe the surge in foreign portfolio inflows signals renewed confidence in Nigerian equities, supported by policy adjustments and liquidity improvements. The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, attributed increasing inflows of foreign direct and portfolio investments to the gains of President Bola Tinubu’s macroeconomic reforms.
The surge in foreign portfolios has supported total transactions at the NGX to a seven-month record of N6.01 trillion, nearly double the N3.1 trillion recorded in the comparable period of 2024.
