Young Nigerians using fintech platforms are fuelling a new wave of growth in the capital market, the Securities and Exchange Commission's Director-General said on Wednesday. Dr Emomotimi Agama told the Moneyline with Nancy programme that digital investment applications are opening the market to a generation of investors who previously had no way to participate.
Agama said the shift is reshaping how Nigerians think about investing. Traditional barriers like high minimum investment amounts and the need to physically visit stockbrokers' offices have kept many people out of the market. Fintech companies are dismantling those barriers by letting investors start with small amounts and trade from their phones.
The capital market regulator's comments reflect a broader change happening across Nigeria's financial sector. Over the past three years, apps like Bamboo, Trove, and others have attracted hundreds of thousands of young users who might never have bought a stock before. The SEC itself has pushed for this opening, loosening some rules to let more retail investors participate.
Agama did not give specific figures for how much money young investors have poured into stocks through these platforms, but market observers say the numbers are significant. The Nigerian Exchange has reported steady growth in the number of new retail investors, with much of that growth concentrated among people under 35.
The development matters because it addresses a long-standing complaint about Nigeria's capital market: that it serves a narrow circle of wealthy investors and institutions while ordinary Nigerians are locked out. Young people using fintech are changing that equation.
The SEC is expected to continue its push to make stock investing easier and safer for retail investors. Agama's comments suggest the regulator will keep working with fintech companies and traditional brokers to expand access without compromising investor protection.
