Foreign Portfolio Flows Surge on Nigerian Stock Market

Foreign portfolio inflows into the Nigerian stock market rose sharply by 354.4% to N609.73 billion in the first seven months of 2025 (7M’25), up from N134.19 billion recorded in the same period of 2022 (7M’22).

The latest Domestic and Foreign Transactions Report from the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) also revealed that foreign outflows surged by 382.2% to N671.56 billion in 7M’25, compared to N138.97 billion in 7M’22.

As a result, total foreign flows (inflows and outflows) increased by 369.2% to N1.281 trillion in 7M’25 against N273.16 billion in 7M’22.

Overall market activity also saw significant growth, with total transactions at the exchange jumping by 240.8% to N6.008 trillion in 7M’25, up from N1.763 trillion in 7M’22.

Breaking down domestic participation, retail investors’ transactions grew by 311.6% to N1.988 trillion in 7M’25 from N482.79 billion in 7M’22. Institutional investors’ transactions also climbed 171.9% to N2.738 trillion from N1.007 trillion in the same period.

On a year-to-date (YtD) basis, foreign inflows rose by 128.7% to N609.73 billion as of July 2025, compared to N266.64 billion in July 2024. Foreign outflows also jumped 102.7% to N671.56 billion, from N331.36 billion in the corresponding period of 2024.

Looking at long-term performance, NGX data shows that over the last 18 years, domestic transactions rose by 33.15% from N3.556 trillion in 2007 to N4.735 trillion in 2024, while foreign transactions grew by 38.31% from N616 billion to N852 billion. In 2024, domestic investors dominated activity, accounting for 85% of total transactions, while foreign investors contributed 15%.

For 2025 so far, domestic transactions stand at approximately N4.727 trillion, while foreign transactions total about N1.281 trillion.