FG eyes emerging market status after FTSE upgrade

The Federal Government of Nigeria is aiming to elevate its capital market to Emerging Market status following confirmation from FTSE Russell that the nation's market will be officially reclassified to Frontier Market status from September 21, 2026. This reclassification comes after Nigeria was excluded from the index in September 2023 due to severe foreign exchange illiquidity and execution bottlenecks.

The Federal Ministry of Finance welcomed the upgrade, viewing it as a significant endorsement of the government's macroeconomic agenda and foreign exchange market overhaul. Minister of Finance, Taiwo Oyedele, emphasized that the upgrade represents a milestone, not a destination, and that the government remains committed to building a deep, liquid, and competitive capital market to achieve Emerging Market status in the near term.

The reclassification will be achieved through significant regulatory milestones, including the implementation of a T+1 trade settlement cycle on June 1, 2026, which eliminated settlement and funding frictions for foreign institutional investors.

Brief written by urgent.news from Punch's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.