Trading on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) hit N5.59 trillion in 2024, reflecting strong growth and higher market participation.
The market was dominated by local investors, according to the NGX report that summarised trading activity as of December 31, 2024. They were responsible for N4.73 trillion, or 85% of the total transactions. However, foreign investors contributed N852.03 billion, or 15% of the overall activity.
What Is Domestic and Foreign Portfolio Participation? This refers to the breakdown of trading activity on the stock exchange based on whether the investors are local (domestic) or international (foreign). It shows how much each group contributes to the buying and selling of shares.
In December 2024 alone, trading activities surged, with total transactions hitting N673.66 billion. This marked a 52.29% increase compared to N442.34 billion recorded in November 2024 and an impressive 95.88% jump from N343.92 billion in December 2023.
Domestic investors continued to lead the market in December, contributing N606.91 billion, which represented 90.09% of the total transactions for the month. Foreign investors, by comparison, contributed N66.75 billion, or 9.91%.
Institutional vs. Retail Investors Among domestic investors, institutional investors (such as pension funds and mutual funds) were more active than retail investors (individuals buying and selling shares). Institutional transactions in December amounted to N406.04 billion, a massive 97.09% increase from November’s N206.02 billion. Retail investors saw a smaller increase of 2.81%, with transactions rising from N195.38 billion in November to N200.87 billion in December.
A Year of Growth Looking at 2024 as a whole, institutional investors were the dominant players in the domestic market. Over the past 18 years, domestic transactions have grown significantly, rising by 33.15% from N3.56 trillion in 2007 to N4.73 trillion in 2024. Foreign transactions also increased, growing by 38.31% from N616 billion to N852 billion during the same period, though they still represent a smaller portion of the market.
Domestic transactions accounted for 83.35% of all market activity in October 2024, with a total value of N3.73 trillion. Due in major part to the active involvement of local investors, Nigerian equity trading has had robust development over the past three years, with total transactions reaching N10.82 trillion by December 31, 2024.
