Domestic Investors Dominate NGX As Transactions Hit ₦3.73tn YTD

Domestic transactions on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) reached a remarkable ₦3.73 trillion year-to-date (YTD) in October 2024, accounting for 83.35 percent of the total market activity.

This highlights the dominance of local investors in driving Nigeria’s capital market.

Total market transactions in October stood at ₦502.73 billion, marking a slight 1.97 percent increase from September’s ₦493.01 billion. Domestic investors contributed ₦455.27 billion (90.56 percent) to the total, with institutional investors leading at ₦285.23 billion, followed by retail investors at ₦170.04 billion.

Compared to September, domestic transactions edged up by 0.81 percent, showcasing the consistency of local participation. Meanwhile, foreign transactions accounted for only 9.44 percent of total activity, despite a slight increase from ₦41.41 billion in September to ₦47.46 billion in October.

October 2024 recorded a total transaction value of ₦502.73 billion, a 127.54 percent rise from ₦220.94 billion in October 2023. Domestic transactions remain the primary growth driver, highlighting the shift towards local dominance.

For the YTD, total market transactions surged from ₦2.93 trillion in 2023 to ₦4.47 trillion in 2024, with domestic transactions contributing a staggering ₦3.73 trillion.

Foreign investors recorded inflows of ₦33.31 billion and outflows of ₦14.15 billion in October, totalling ₦47.46 billion, a 14.61 percent increase from September. However, foreign activity accounted for just 9.44% of the market, emphasising their secondary role.

For the first ten months of 2024, foreign transactions totalled ₦744.34 billion (16.65 percent of market activity), showing an uptick compared to ₦291.38 billion in 2023. Notably, foreign inflows peaked at ₦54.87 billion in May but have since declined, reaching their lowest at ₦11.26 billion in September.

Between 2007 and 2023, domestic transactions declined by 10.94 percent, from ₦3.56 trillion to ₦3.17 trillion. Foreign transactions fell even further, by 33.28 percent, from ₦616 billion to ₦411 billion. Despite these declines, domestic investors have increasingly dominated market activity, accounting for 89 percent of total activity in 2023.

The NGX data highlights a crucial shift towards domestic investor dominance, driven by institutional activity and a steady retail investor presence. While foreign participation shows intermittent growth, it remains significantly outpaced by local activity.

This sustained domestic strength reflects growing investor confidence in the Nigerian market, even amid economic and regulatory shifts. As institutional and retail investors continue to lead, the NGX remains a cornerstone of Nigeria’s financial ecosystem.