If OPay Is Going Public, Nigeria Should Be on the Ticket

Bloomberg's reporting suggests that OPay, a Nigerian payments company, could potentially list on the New York Stock Exchange before the end of the year. The company, which is built on Nigerian consumers, agents, and transactions, is reportedly engaged by Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, and JPMorgan for a potential U.S. listing with a valuation of around $4 billion.

This would be a significant achievement, validating the belief that Nigeria can produce businesses that compete at the highest level in global capital markets. However, this raises a question: why not have both a New York and a Lagos listing?

A dual listing could offer several advantages. Firstly, it would provide Nigerian users with the opportunity to become shareholders, converting economic participation into ownership. Nigeria has a track record of successful dual listings, with MTN Nigeria attracting over 126,000 retail investors and creating tens of thousands of new market accounts. This demonstrates that a strong domestic consumer franchise can generate substantial domestic investor interest.

Secondly, having a listing in Lagos would provide domestic liquidity. Nigeria's capital market has shown depth through banking recapitalization and the expansion of pension assets. The Nigerian Exchange now has indices designed to support institutional investment, which could be of interest to domestic capital pools. The market infrastructure in Lagos has also improved, with T+1 settlement aligning the equities settlement cycle with foreign markets like New York.

This reduces operational friction for international investors and opens up additional sources of liquidity and ownership.

Thirdly, there is precedent for dual listings. Companies like Seplat, which has maintained a Lagos and London dual listing since 2014, and Airtel Africa, which listed in London and subsequently in Lagos in 2019, have demonstrated that a company can use an international market for global capital and visibility while maintaining a meaningful connection to its home market. The supposed choice between international capital and domestic ownership is not a zero-sum game; both can coexist.

Lastly, there is alignment to consider. OPay operates within Nigeria's regulated payments ecosystem, with the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation listing the company as a licensed mobile money operator. Its regulatory relationships, agent network, and core customer base are deeply Nigerian. This creates a natural commercial argument for maintaining a visible presence in the country's capital market.

However, New York may still be the right primary market for OPay due to its deep pool of fintech investors, strong international analyst coverage, broad universe of comparable companies, and efficient access to global capital. In this case, Lagos should complement rather than compete with New York.

While a dual listing would introduce additional compliance costs and administrative complexity, the Nigerian market must continue making itself more accessible and operational. Faster settlement, better market infrastructure, and broader institutional participation are not just cosmetic reforms; they determine whether companies view a domestic listing as a commercial decision or a patriotic sacrifice.

This distinction matters, as it could determine whether Nigeria's most successful businesses begin contemplating the public markets and export wealth-creation opportunities rather than reaping them domestically.