Foreign portfolio investors have invested N1.03 trillion in Nigerian equities during the first nine months of 2025, the Nigerian Exchange reported in its September 2025 investment update.

This amount is over two and a half times the N396.41 billion recorded for all of 2024 and nearly six times the N174.8 billion inflow seen in 2023.

Year-on-year, inflows surged 231 per cent, rising from N310.99 billion by September 2024 to N1.03 trillion by September 2025.

The rebound signals a strong revival of foreign interest in Nigerian assets.

It was noted that the liberalisation of the foreign exchange market, efforts to clear FX backlogs, and other reforms have strengthened investor confidence.

The inflow figures suggest that these measures are starting to restore foreign participation to levels not seen in recent years.

However, the monthly data points to volatility rather than consistent growth. In January, inflows amounted to N25.66 billion, down roughly 2.29 per cent from December 2024’s N26.26 billion.

February saw inflows decline further to N18.05 billion, a drop of nearly 30%. March, however, witnessed a dramatic surge to N349.97 billion, a month-on-month increase of over 1,800%, marking the largest inflow of the year so far.

The momentum proved short-lived as April inflows tumbled to N26.64 billion, a 92 per cent decline. May rebounded to N66.11 billion, up 148 per cent, followed by a modest rise in June to N72.82 billion, a 10 per cent increase.

July dipped again to N50.48 billion, down 31 per cent, before August saw a strong recovery to N95.14 billion, up 89 per cent.

September then recorded another sharp jump, with inflows reaching N325.46 billion, a 242 per cent rise from the previous month.

Despite the record inflows, domestic investors continue to dominate market activity.

Between January and September, domestic trades totaled N6.70 trillion, accounting for 78.4 per cent of all transactions, while foreign trades amounted to N1.84 trillion, or 21.6 per cent.

In September, domestic trading surged 67.5 per cent to N1.23 trillion compared with August, driven largely by institutional activity. Institutional trades soared 143 per cent to N955.26 billion, while retail trades declined 19 per cent to N278.57 billion.

Foreign transactions also rose sharply during the month, climbing 126 per cent to N387.62 billion.