Nigeria’s trading apps boost demand among young investors

Nigeria is experiencing a growing trend of young people investing through mobile trading apps, reshaping participation in its financial markets and expanding access to assets that were previously available to wealthier investors, according to a report by African Business on November 11th.

Capitalising on the demand, trading platforms like Trove Finance, Bamboo, Chaka, Cowrywise, PiggyVest, RiseVest, and I-Invest have introduced features that allow users to buy stocks, bonds, and mutual funds with small deposits, sometimes starting from as little as 1,000 naira, compared to traditional investment accounts that often require between 100,000 naira and 500,000 naira to open.

The impact of these reforms is evident in the market activity as retail trading on the Nigerian Exchange jumped 88% in July to 516.5 billion naira (about $351 million), constituting nearly a third of total monthly transactions.

Growth in retail trading has been visible for several years; however, regulators emphasise digital platforms boosting the trend by lowering barriers and offering fractional investments in both local and international markets. Notably, Nigerian foreign reserves have reached $46.7 billion, marking a seven-year high since 2018.

According to African Business, Emomotimi Agama, Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission, said that as 74% of Nigeria’s population is under 24, it is essential to “digitise our processes and engage them through technology they understand, like apps and digital platforms.”

The report highlighted that digital brokers now make up most of the new investment accounts. What’s more, out of the 151,749 brokerage accounts opened between January and June, 70% came from platforms like Cowrywise, Bamboo, Trove and Chaka rather than traditional brokers. 

PiggyVest now has more than four million users investing in fixed-income assets, equities and real estate, while Cowrywise launched stock-market access in March and received over 12,000 sign-ups in the first week. 

Trove Finance and Bamboo offer fractional access to both Nigerian and overseas shares, and RiseVest focuses on dollar-based assets such as US bonds and stocks. Some platforms are now expanding their reach beyond Nigeria, with Chaka and Bamboo launching services across Africa, as they aim to develop a single digital market for the continent by 2030. 

The growing interest of the young Nigerian population in investing might signal a positive result of the changes introduced to the Investment and Securities Act earlier this year, which replaced the 2007 act and laid out clearer rules for online trading and digital assets. 

African Business, Maghrebi.org