- As FG hails return after three years exile
BY COBHAM NSA – After three years exclusion, Nigeria has made a dramatic return to the global financial stage with index provider FTSE Russell officially upgrading the nation’s capital market from “Unclassified” to “Frontier Market” status, effective Monday, 21st September 2026.
This historic breakthrough ends a painful, three-year exile sparked by the catastrophic fallout of September 2023, when severe dollar shortages, frozen foreign exchange execution, and crippled capital repatriation mechanisms effectively locked international investors out of Africa’s powerhouse economy.
A statement by the Federal Ministry of Finance welcoming the decision said the reclassification follows sustained improvements in foreign exchange liquidity, capital repatriation and market accessibility, and reflects the cumulative impact of the Federal Government’s macroeconomic and structural reform programme.
According to Oyedele, “It is a meaningful signal to global capital that our market is open, orderly and improving”, adding also that: “It reflects years of disciplined work across government and the private sector to restore confidence in our economy.
“We see this as a milestone, not a destination. Our ambition remains to build a capital market that is deep, liquid and competitive enough to earn Emerging Market status in the near term.”
The Minister praised the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX), the Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS), and all capital market operators and stakeholders for their coordinated blitz of regulatory reforms, infrastructure upgrades, and robust investor engagement that restored Nigeria’s standing among global index providers.
Maintaining that Nigeria’s high-stakes campaign to overhaul its financial architecture and climb the global economic ladder is fully on course, Oyedele said the Federal Government will continue tightening its alliance with market watchdogs to flood the financial system with liquidity, open the doors to a broader wave of everyday investors, and build ironclad protections around their capital.
Furthermore, the Fiscal Reform Chief explained that this institutional face-lift forms the backbone of a calculated, medium-term strategy to finally catapult Africa’s powerhouse into the prestigious league of global Emerging Markets.
Going forward, Oyedele said the Federal Government remains committed to working with market regulators and institutions to deepen liquidity, broaden participation and strengthen investor protections, with the medium-term goal of positioning Nigeria for progression to Emerging Market status.
He assured that the Ministry will not relent in supporting policies that enhance the depth, transparency and global competitiveness of the capital market as a key pillar of Nigeria’s economic transformation agenda.
