Sola Oni
The 30th annual convention of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS) challenged Nigeria’s capital market to maneuver past improved infrastructure and capital mobilisation to financing productive investments, creating jobs and delivering shared prosperity.
Nigeria’s capital market has made appreciable progress in constructing the infrastructure required to help financial progress. Faster settlement cycles, improved buying and selling programs, regulatory reforms and elevated capital mobilisation have enhanced its capability to channel funds into the financial system. However, the final measure of success lies in translating these achievements into productive investments, enterprise enlargement, employment technology and improved residing requirements.
This was the central message of the 30th annual convention of CIS, which introduced collectively policymakers, regulators, stockbrokers, buyers and enterprise leaders in Lagos from November 4 to five, 2026.
Held below the theme, “From Capital Mobilised to Prosperity Realised: Financing Nigeria’s Next Era of Growth and Global Competitiveness,” the convention examined how the capital market might turn out to be a more practical financing mechanism for infrastructure improvement, industrial enlargement and nationwide competitiveness.
Its overarching conclusion was that whereas vital progress had been made in strengthening market infrastructure, the subsequent frontier was market depth and the efficient deployment of capital into the actual financial system.
Setting the agenda
The build-up included a go to to Nigerian Exchange (NGX), the place CIS President and 14th Chairman of Council, Dr Fiona Ahimie, rang the closing gong. She urged stockbrokers to embrace innovation, strengthen skilled competencies and intensify investor schooling.
The Second Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of the NGX, Jude Chiemeka, highlighted the alternate’s position in offering corporations with medium- and long-term financing whereas creating liquidity for buyers. Chairman of the Association of Securities Dealing Houses of Nigeria (ASHON), Sehinde Adenagbe, reaffirmed the longstanding partnership between each skilled our bodies.
A city corridor assembly additionally offered members with a chance to debate skilled considerations and the Institute’s future path.
From market reforms to financial impression
Opening the convention, Ahimie challenged stakeholders to broaden their definition of capital market success. She argued that efficiency shouldn’t be measured solely by market capitalisation, transaction volumes and funds raised, but in addition by the market’s contribution to enterprise enlargement, infrastructure improvement, employment and improved residing requirements.
She described the capital market as a important bridge between financial savings and companies requiring long-term financing, stressing that useful resource mobilisation should translate into nationwide improvement.
The Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Dr Emomotimi Agama, recognized know-how as a significant drive reworking capital elevating and securities buying and selling. He disclosed that the Commission was deploying know-how to strengthen market surveillance, regulatory oversight and the detection of market abuses, thereby defending buyers, preserving market integrity and sustaining confidence.
Building the market of the future
At Executive Panel 1, themed, “Building the Capital Market of the Future: Leveraging Technology, Innovative Finance and Regulatory Excellence for Nigeria’s Global Competitiveness,” Chapel Hill Denham Chief Executive Officer, Bolaji Balogun, reviewed reforms that had improved operational effectivity.
These included the Investments and Securities Act 2025, the transition from T+3 to T+2 and subsequently T+1 settlement, and prolonged buying and selling hours.
However, Balogun cautioned that improved infrastructure wouldn’t robotically produce a deeper market. Despite elevating N6.49 trillion in 2025, the prime 10 listed corporations accounted for about 72 per cent of complete market worth, whereas market capitalisation stood at about 37 per cent of GDP.
He referred to as for extra high quality listings, wider investor participation and modern devices, together with mission bonds, infrastructure funds, Sukuk, inexperienced and orange bonds, and convertible securities to finance roads, electrical energy, ports and housing.
He additionally urged authorities to combine the capital market into privatisation and infrastructure concession programmes. Investment-grade scores and home listings for presidency concessions, he argued, might strengthen transparency, accountability and liquidity. Positioning Lagos as Africa’s most popular capital market hub was one other advice, leveraging Nigeria’s financial scale, skilled experience and substantial pension belongings.
Pension funds and productive funding
In her keynote tackle, the Director-General of National Pension Commission (PenCom), Omolola Oloworaran, described pension funds as a big supply of long-term, affected person capital succesful of supporting infrastructure, enterprise enlargement and employment.
She emphasised, nevertheless, that their deployment have to be guided by prudence, sustainable returns and safety of contributors’ retirement financial savings.
Oloworaran recognized restricted liquidity, weak worth discovery, insufficient listings, market focus and low investor participation as constraints to efficient pension funding. She challenged stockbrokers to draw high quality corporations and create viable alternatives for changing long-term financial savings into productive financial exercise.
Financing infrastructure, manufacturing and SMEs
Executive Panel 2 examined “Financing Productive Investments in the Real Economy: Spotlight on Infrastructure, Manufacturing and SMEs.”
Its lead speaker, who’s the Chairman, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Otunba Francis Meshioye, argued that Nigeria’s financing problem was not merely the availability of capital however the restricted channels via which funds reached productive enterprises.
Using an economy-as-a-farm analogy, he likened capital to water and the capital market to a reservoir. Although the reservoir was filling, the pipes connecting funds to productive actions remained slim.
He recognized 4 financing mismatches: short-term funding for long-term tasks; foreign-currency borrowing by companies incomes naira revenues; excessive lending charges; and restricted credit score entry for small and medium-sized enterprises.
To tackle Nigeria’s estimated US$2.3 trillion infrastructure deficit, Meshioye advocated better mobilisation of pension funds, infrastructure bonds, inexperienced bonds, Sukuk and public-private partnerships.
He mentioned producers wanted long-term financing for gear, medium-term working capital and various power investments to cut back manufacturing prices. Export finance, commerce ensures and regional fee programs have been equally essential for competitiveness below the African Continental Free Trade Area.
For SMEs, he proposed credit score ensures, pooling small loans into marketable securities and utilizing digital information to enhance credit score evaluation.
He urged stockbrokers to organize bankable tasks, mobilise long-term naira capital, promote evidence-based danger pricing, widen SME financing and measure funding outcomes.
Mobilising home and worldwide funding
The convention additionally examined methods for attracting home and overseas funding into the Nigerian capital market.
Family-owned companies and company founders have been inspired to rethink their reluctance to checklist on NGX, which members argued ought to turn out to be a most popular vacation spot for corporations looking for capital, liquidity and broader possession.
The N2.15 trillion Dangote Refinery preliminary public providing, which attracted buyers from all 54 African nations, demonstrated the market’s potential to draw substantial funding. Dual listings and Nigerian Depositary Receipts have been additionally proposed as devices for connecting Nigerian companies with worldwide buyers.
With pension belongings estimated at N31.8 trillion, members referred to as for enticing funding alternatives to diversify allocations past authorities securities.
A Nigerian Personal Investment Account scheme, supported by tax incentives and digital entry, was proposed to encourage retail participation. Experiences from the United Kingdom, Japan, Malaysia and Kenya have been cited as helpful fashions.
Lessons from the London Stock Exchange(LSE) and Johannesburg Stock Exchange(JSE) highlighted the significance of credible establishments, efficient regulation, dependable infrastructure and robust company governance. Nigerian corporations, members confused, should enhance productiveness, embrace know-how and meet worldwide requirements to compete globally.
Sanwo-Olu Endorses N5bn endowment fund
A serious spotlight was the launch of a N5 billion CIS Endowment Fund to help capital market analysis, skilled schooling, tutorial excellence and human capital improvement.
Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, himself a stockbroker, endorsed the initiative and pledged the state authorities’s help. He disclosed that Lagos had raised greater than N200 billion via the capital market to finance infrastructure improvement.
The fund is anticipated to strengthen the Institute’s capability to spend money on analysis, skilled information and the subsequent technology of capital market professionals.
Professional devt. and institutional recognition
The convention featured the maiden Presidential Awards, an initiative of instant previous President, Oluropo Dada, to recognise excellence, innovation, accountability {and professional} dedication.
Recipients included Christopher Aroniyo, Best Graduating Student; Abuja and Northern District, Best District; Nigeria Revenue Service, Most Supportive Non-Capital Market Organisation; and Meristem Group, Most Supportive Capital Market Operator.
The Institute additionally conferred Fellowship on 63 members and inducted 509 Associates, its largest consumption in historical past. The new inductees have been urged to uphold skilled competence, moral conduct and integrity.
Ahimie outlined priorities together with skilled ethics, stakeholder engagement, youth improvement, steady capability constructing and stronger contributions to nationwide financial coverage.
Other actions included a Prosperity Walk, profession talks for college kids and visits to Vitafoam Nigeria Plc and Berger Paints Nigeria Plc. Another group visited NGX, whereas the scholar engagement programme launched younger folks to profession alternatives in the securities market.
Call for broader market impression
In his goodwill message, NGX Group Chairman, Alhaji (Dr) Umaru Kwairanga, challenged stockbrokers to maneuver past transaction execution and turn out to be proactive facilitators of financial improvement. He urged them to determine viable funding alternatives and information companies and authorities establishments in accessing capital.
Kwairanga maintained that the market’s success needs to be measured by companies supported, jobs created and financial worth generated, reasonably than funds raised alone. He additionally advocated digital innovation, stronger company governance and investor safety, whereas encouraging stockbrokers to embrace the African Exchanges Linkage Project (AELP) to develop cross-border funding alternatives and deepen the pan-African market.
Director-General of the Debt Management Office (DMO), Patience Oniha, advocated deeper participation in the home bond market, diversified funding sources, modern financing devices and stronger collaboration with capital market operators. She emphasised the have to deploy debt capital productively to finance infrastructure, generate financial returns, strengthen fiscal stability and maintain investor confidence.
Similarly, ASHON chairman, Adenagbe, recognized correct issuer profiling as elementary to investor safety. He urged stockbrokers to scrutinise fundraising aims, proposed tasks, potential vulnerabilities, danger urge for food and mechanisms for monitoring fund utilisation. Such due diligence, he maintained, would strengthen transparency and accountability whereas making certain buyers’ assets served their meant functions.
Other goodwill messages got here from Vice President Kashim Shettima, represented by Economic Adviser, Dr Tope Fasua; Finance Minister, Dr Taiwo Oyedele; and Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Capital Markets, Hon. Solomon Bob, amongst others.
Delivering prosperity
The convention established that know-how, regulatory reforms and modern monetary devices are essential enablers of capital market improvement. However, their worth should in the end be demonstrated via tangible financial outcomes.
Can the market finance important infrastructure, develop industrial manufacturing, present companies with reasonably priced long-term capital, create employment and enhance alternatives for Nigerians?
These questions outline the subsequent section of Nigeria’s capital market improvement.
The 30th CIS annual convention due to this fact, ended with a problem extending past its two-day engagement: capital mobilisation is just the starting. The actual measure of success lies in deploying monetary assets to construct companies, strengthen industries, create jobs and enhance residing requirements.
Ultimately, a vibrant capital market shouldn’t be merely one which raises extra money, data greater buying and selling volumes or achieves greater market capitalisation. It is one which converts financial savings into productive investments and monetary assets into nationwide prosperity.
*Oni, an Integrated Communications Strategist and Chief Executive Officer of Sofunix Investment and Communications, is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS)
