The Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Emomotimi Agama, has lamented that the Nigerian capital market’s 10-year vision has failed to achieve half of its objectives.
Agama expressed the dissatisfaction in a lead paper titled ‘Evaluating the Nigerian Capital Market Masterplan 2015-2025’.
He presented the paper at the annual conference of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers, according to a statement on Sunday, October 26.
He lamented over the alarmingly low participation of Nigerians in the traditional capital market, noting that fewer than four per cent of the country’s adult population are active investors in the capital market.
The SEC boss described the low participation rate as a major impediment to economic growth and capital formation.
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He stressed that while fewer than three million Nigerians invest in the capital market, more than 60 million engage daily in gambling activities, spending an estimated $5.5 million every day.
He also hinted that over $50 billion worth of cryptocurrency transactions flowed through Nigeria between July 2023 and June 2024, stating that this underscores the sophistication and risk tolerance of investors that the traditional market has yet to capture.
“This reveals a paradox; an appetite for risk clearly exists, but not the trust or access to channel that energy into productive investment,” Agama lamented.
According to him, the Nigerian market capitalisation-to-GDP ratio stands at about 30 per cent, far below South Africa’s 320 per cent, Malaysia’s 123 per cent, and India’s 92 per cent.
This disparity highlights the urgent need to deepen financial inclusion and rebuild investor confidence, the SEC boss urged.
He recalled that the vision of the ten-year Nigerian Capital Market Masterplan, launched in 2015, was designed to reposition Nigeria’s capital market as the engine of economic transformation by mobilising long-term finance for infrastructure and enterprise development.
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“Today, as we stand at the sunset of that ten-year plan, our task is not ceremonial; it is reflective and diagnostic.
“We must ask: what did we achieve, where did we fall short, and what lessons must anchor our next decade of reforms?” Agama stated.
He hinted that less than half of the 108 initiatives under the Nigerian Capital Market Masterplan were fully achieved, blaming it on limited alignment with national development plans, inadequate tracking metrics, and weak stakeholder ownership for the shortfall.
Despite progress in areas such as green bonds, sukuk, fintech integration, and non-interest finance, Agama said market liquidity remains concentrated in a few large-cap stocks like Airtel Africa, Dangote Cement, and MTN Nigeria.
A recent data analysis by Pinnacle Daily of the Nigerian stock market revealed that out of the approximately 147 companies listed on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), 10 dominant firms are responsible for more than 60 per cent of the NGX’s total market capitalisation, exerting a significant influence on the exchange’s overall performance
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The report showed that BUA Foods now leads the top 10 most capitalised stocks, followed by MTN Nigeria Communications, Dangote Cement, Airtel Africa, BUA Cement, Seplat Energy, Guarantee Trust Holding Company, Geregu Power, Zenith Bank, and Aradel Holdings.
Challenges ahead
The SEC boss listed six key challenges for the next phase of reforms, pointing to low retail participation, market concentration, falling foreign inflows, underutilised pension assets, untapped diaspora capital, and a widening infrastructure financing gap.
“Nigeria’s $150 billion annual infrastructure deficit far exceeds the market’s contribution, with only N1.5 trillion approved in PPP bonds. This shows a misalignment between financial innovation and national priorities,” Agama said.
He, therefore, called for a “reimagined SEC” that serves as both regulator and enabler of private-sector-driven growth.
He urged that the next decade be focused on trust-building, transparency, and inclusion.
“Vision without execution is inertia — and reform without measurement is aspiration without accountability,” Agama added.
Alex is a business journalist cum data enthusiast with the Pinnacle Daily. He can be reached via ealex@thepinnacleng.com, @ehime_alex on X
