By Obas Esiedesa, Abuja
The Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Dr. Emomotimi Agama, has expressed concern over the alarmingly low level of participation by Nigerians in the capital market, revealing that fewer than four percent of the country’s adult population are active investors.
Presenting a lead paper titled “Evaluating the Nigerian Capital Market Masterplan 2015–2025” at the annual conference of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers, Agama described the low participation rate as a major obstacle to economic growth and capital formation.
According to a statement from the Commission, Agama noted that while fewer than three million Nigerians currently invest in the capital market, over 60 million people engage daily in gambling activities, spending an estimated $5.5 million every day.
“This reveals a paradox — an appetite for risk clearly exists, but not the trust or access to channel that energy into productive investment,” Agama said.
The SEC boss lamented that Nigeria’s market capitalization-to-GDP ratio stands at about 30 percent, far below those of South Africa (320%), Malaysia (123%), and India (92%), a gap he said underscores the urgent need to deepen financial inclusion and rebuild investor confidence.
Recalling the vision behind the Ten-Year Capital Market Master Plan (CMMP) launched in 2015, Agama said it was designed to position the Nigerian capital market as the engine of economic transformation by mobilizing long-term finance for infrastructure and enterprise development.
“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?” he stated.
Agama disclosed that less than half of the 108 initiatives outlined in the CMMP were fully achieved, citing limited alignment with national development plans, weak tracking mechanisms, and insufficient stakeholder ownership as major constraints.
While acknowledging progress in areas such as Green Bonds, Sukuk issuance, fintech integration, and non-interest finance, he noted that market liquidity remains heavily concentrated in a few large-cap stocks including Airtel Africa, Dangote Cement, and MTN Nigeria.
Highlighting six key challenges for the next phase of reforms, Agama identified: Low retail participation, Market concentration, Declining foreign inflows, Underutilized pension assets, Untapped diaspora capital and A widening infrastructure financing gap
He observed that Nigeria’s $150 billion annual infrastructure deficit dwarfs the market’s contribution, with only ₦1.5 trillion approved in public-private partnership (PPP) bonds.
“This shows a misalignment between financial innovation and national priorities,” he said.
Agama further disclosed that over $50 billion worth of cryptocurrency transactions passed through Nigeria between July 2023 and June 2024, a trend he said reflects both the sophistication and risk appetite of Nigerian investors — one the traditional capital market has yet to fully capture.
The SEC DG called for a “reimagined SEC” that acts not only as a regulator but also as an enabler of private-sector-driven growth, stressing that the next decade of reforms must focus on trust-building, transparency, and inclusion.
“Vision without execution is inertia — and reform without measurement is aspiration without accountability,” he declared.
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