The Securities and Exchange Commission has reported that N120.88 billion in registered private equity and infrastructure investment funds remains undeployed in Nigeria’s capital market as of the fourth quarter of 2024.

According to the Registered Private Equity and Infrastructure Committed Capital and Draw Down Position report, total committed capital across both sectors stood at N409.06 billion, of which N288.18 billion, representing about 70.5 per cent, has been drawn down.

The remaining 29.5 per cent, or N120.88 billion, is yet to be utilized, signaling a substantial volume of idle capital awaiting investment in productive ventures.

Infrastructure funds recorded a total committed capital of N305.97 billion as of Q4 2024, with N248.27 billion drawn down and N57.7 billion still unutilized.

This unutilized amount represents nearly 48% of the total undeployed funds, underscoring delays or pending project executions within the infrastructure sector.

Although committed capital grew by 12.58 per cent from N271.76 billion in Q3 to N305.97 billion in Q4 2024, the drawdown level remained unchanged.

This indicates that while investor confidence and interest in infrastructure investments are increasing, the pace of actual fund deployment has not matched the rise in commitments.

Key contributors to the undeployed infrastructure capital include:

ARM-Harith Infrastructure Fund: N9.36 billion committed, N4.63 billion drawn down, leaving N4.73 billion unutilized.

Actis (managed by Actis West Africa): N60.83 billion committed, N14.22 billion drawn down, with N46.61 billion yet to be deployed.

Africa Plus Partners (Africa Infra Plus Fund 2): N18 billion committed, N17.85 billion utilized, leaving about N150 million unutilized.

In contrast, the United Capital Infrastructure Fund is currently operating on an overdrawn position, with a N13.22 billion drawdown against a N6.6 billion committed capital—indicating excess disbursement beyond its commitment level.

The private equity segment reported a total committed capital of N103.09 billion as of Q4 2024, with N39.91 billion drawn down and N63.17 billion remaining unutilized. This indicates that more than 60 per cent of private equity commitments are yet to be deployed into active investments.

The undeployed capital of N120.88 billion could have significant implications for fund managers and the wider economy. While the volume of committed capital reflects strong investor confidence, delays in actual disbursement may hinder project execution—particularly in infrastructure, where funding shortfalls remain a key constraint.

Analysts tracking fund performance observe that high commitment levels without corresponding drawdowns often point to structural or operational challenges, including regulatory hurdles, project preparation delays, and execution bottlenecks.