Nigeria’s cryptocurrency transactions have surged to $50 billion within just one year, underscoring a dramatic shift in how Nigerians are investing and engaging with financial markets, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The disclosure was made by the SEC’s Director-General, Dr. Emomotimi Agama, in a statement on Sunday. He revealed that the volume of crypto transactions recorded between July 2023 and June 2024 highlights a fast-evolving investment landscape where digital assets are attracting far more participation than the traditional capital market.
Dr. Agama described the trend as a “paradox” – a reflection of Nigeria’s appetite for risk but also its crisis of trust in conventional investment channels.
“This reveals a paradox – an appetite for risk clearly exists, but not the trust or access to channel that energy into productive investment,” he said.
According to him, less than 4% of Nigerian adults are active investors in the traditional capital market, compared to over 60 million Nigerians who engage in gambling activities daily, spending an estimated $5.5 million every day.
The Missing Trust in Traditional Investment
Dr. Agama said Nigeria’s market capitalisation-to-GDP ratio remains at 30%, far below that of countries such as South Africa (320%), Malaysia (123%), and India (92%).
He warned that without deliberate efforts to rebuild trust and improve accessibility, the country’s capital market could continue to lag behind its global peers.
“An appetite for risk is not the problem,” he noted. “The challenge lies in creating the systems and trust that convert this appetite into productive capital formation.”
Capital Market Master Plan: The Next Chapter
Reflecting on the Capital Market Master Plan (CMMP) 2015 – 2025, Dr. Agama described it as a visionary framework aimed at positioning the Nigerian capital market as a driver of economic transformation and infrastructure financing.
However, he disclosed that less than half of the 108 initiatives outlined in the plan have been fully implemented due to poor alignment, limited data metrics, and weak stakeholder ownership.
While progress has been recorded in areas such as Green Bonds and fintech integration, Dr. Agama noted that market liquidity remains concentrated around a few blue-chip stocks – MTN Nigeria, Airtel Africa, and Dangote Cement.
He also highlighted persistent challenges such as low retail participation, declining foreign inflows, underutilised pension funds, untapped diaspora capital, and a $150 billion annual infrastructure deficit that dwarfs the market’s current capacity.
“Nigeria’s infrastructure deficit far exceeds the market’s contribution, with only N1.5 trillion approved in PPP bonds,” he explained. “This shows a misalignment between financial innovation and national priorities.”
A Call for a Reimagined SEC
Dr. Agama emphasised that the next phase of reform must focus on building trust, transparency, and inclusion – transforming the SEC from a traditional regulator into a strategic enabler of private-sector-driven growth.
“Our vision must not just be about oversight but empowerment,” he said. “Vision without execution is inertia.”
StakeBridge IRPR Consulting Limited observes that Dr. Agama’s reflections signal a turning point for Nigeria’s financial ecosystem. The contrast between crypto engagement and capital market participation points to a generational shift in investor behaviour – one that calls for strategic communication, financial literacy, and policy alignment to rebuild confidence and channel Nigeria’s risk appetite into productive national investment.
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