Nigeria Targets SMEs, Infrastructure Funding with New Capital Market Masterplan

By Adedapo Adesanya

Nigeria has unveiled a 10-year capital market masterplan aimed at expanding access to long-term financing for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), infrastructure and other priority sectors as the country seeks to build a $1 trillion economy by 2030.

The Nigeria Capital Market Masterplan 2.0, covering 2026 to 2036, outlines reforms to deepen the capital market, broaden the range of businesses and investors participating in it, and mobilise domestic and international capital for economic development.

The masterplan was launched alongside a National Savings Scheme, with both initiatives designed to strengthen the mobilisation of domestic resources and channel more funds into productive investments.

The Vice President, Mr Kashim Shettima, launched the plans alongside Mr Taiwo Oyedele, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy; Mr Peter Vowles, the United Kingdom High Commissioner to Nigeria; and Mr Mark Napier, Chief Executive Officer of FSD Africa.

Speaking at the event, Mr Emomotimi Agama, Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), said the masterplan would help deepen Nigeria’s capital market to the scale required to finance the country’s economic ambitions.

“Every great economy has, at its heart, a capital market that turns the savings of ordinary people into the factories, roads, homes and businesses that create jobs. Nigeria has the people, the enterprise and the ambition. What we are now building is a market to match them,” Mr Agama said.

He said the decision to launch the masterplan alongside the National Savings Scheme reflected the importance of domestic savings in financing national development.

“Savings are the raw material of investment, and a nation that saves through its own capital market builds with its own resources,” the SEC director-general added.

The masterplan seeks to make it easier for businesses and state governments to raise capital, expand retail and diaspora participation, attract more foreign institutional investors and strengthen sustainable finance.

For SMEs, the proposed reforms are expected to widen opportunities to access capital-market funding, providing an alternative to conventional financing channels and helping businesses secure longer-term funds for expansion and investment.

Infrastructure is also a key priority, with the roadmap seeking to direct capital towards projects and sectors including energy, climate resilience and other areas critical to economic growth and job creation.

The plan further proposes support for digital and tokenised assets, alongside measures to modernise market infrastructure and broaden the range of financial instruments available to issuers and investors.

The masterplan was developed by the SEC with technical support from FSD Africa, funded by the UK government. The support enabled a consortium led by Genesis Analytics and Bourse Consult to contribute to the development of the roadmap and its implementation framework.

Speaking through Mr Paul Healey, Head of Green Growth and Private Sector Development at the British High Commission, Mr Vowles said the initiative would help mobilise more investment and connect capital with commercial opportunities in businesses and infrastructure.

“The UK is proud to have funded FSD Africa’s support for the development of Nigeria’s Capital Markets Masterplan 2.0. This ambitious, Nigerian-led reform will help mobilise more domestic and international investment and connect capital with commercial opportunities in businesses and infrastructure,” he said.

Mr Vowles said the initiative formed part of the wider UK-Nigeria Strategic Partnership, which prioritises economic growth and job creation.

“By strengthening Nigeria’s capital markets and deepening links between our financial sectors, we can create new opportunities for investment, jobs and shared prosperity in both our countries,” he added.

On his part, Mr Napier said the masterplan was intended to ensure that capital-market development supported the wider economy by directing more funding towards businesses, infrastructure and sustainable growth.

“Our support for Nigeria’s new Masterplan is grounded in the principle that capital markets need to work for the wider economy. With its scale and regional importance, Nigeria has a significant opportunity to mobilise more domestic and international capital towards businesses, infrastructure and sustainable growth,” he said.

He cited FSD Africa’s experience in Zambia and Ethiopia, where support for strengthening financial-market structures and addressing regulatory and market constraints helped establish conditions for greater capital mobilisation, including investment in renewable energy.

According to FSD Africa, its support for Nigeria’s masterplan has focused on linking capital-market development with the country’s wider economic priorities, including infrastructure, SME growth, financial inclusion and sustainable development.

The roadmap is structured around five pillars: regulatory clarity and enforcement; modernising market infrastructure; broadening the range of issuers and financial instruments; diversifying the investor base; and strengthening institutional and professional capacity.

Each pillar has a sequenced implementation plan with defined responsibilities, timelines and measures of success to guide the execution of the proposed reforms over the next decade.

The new plan also builds on the previous Capital Market Masterplan, which recorded an overall activity completion rate of 63 per cent. While the earlier plan supported several reforms, financial inclusion, regional integration, sustainable finance and the mobilisation of capital to priority sectors remained areas identified for further progress.

Nigeria also intends to strengthen its position as a regional financial hub through greater cooperation with other African markets, cross-border capital raising and listing frameworks, and closer alignment with initiatives under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).