By Peter Egwuatu
The Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) recorded a significant shift in foreign investment activity in the first quarter of 2026, Q1â26, as foreign inflows surged by 78 per cent to N393.68 billion, up from N221.62 billion in the corresponding period of 2025. The increase signals renewed investor interest in the market.
However, the rise in inflows was matched by increased capital exit, with foreign outflows climbing by 31.2 per cent to N420.37 billion Year-to-Date (YtD), compared with N320.37 billion in 2025. This indicates that while more foreign funds entered the market, a sizeable portion was also withdrawn, reflecting cautious investor sentiment.
According to the NGX Domestic and Foreign Portfolio Participation in Equity Report released yesterday, on a monthly basis, total transactions on the Exchange grew by 13.10% to N1.744 trillion (about $1.26 billion) in March from N1.5424 trillion (about $1.13 billion) in February.
Meanwhile, despite the uptick in foreign transactions, domestic investors continued to dominate market activity. In March 2026, the value of transactions by domestic investors exceeded foreign transactions by about 66 per cent, reaffirming their pivotal role in the market.
A breakdown of Month-on-Month, MoM performance shows contrasting trends between domestic and foreign investors. Domestic transactions rose modestly by 3.72 per cent, from N1.4033 trillion in February to N1.4556 trillion in March. In contrast, foreign transactions recorded a sharp increase of 107.74 per cent, rising from N139.03 billion (about $101.97 million) to N288.82 billion (about $208.28 million).
Within the domestic segment, institutional investors maintained dominance over retail investors. In March 2026, institutional activity exceeded retail transactions by 26 per cent. Retail transactions dipped slightly by 1.30 per cent to N541.37 billion from N548.50 billion in February, while institutional transactions grew by 6.95 per cent to N914.23 billion from N854.83 billion.
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