Cumulative turnover of Nigeria’s fixed-income and foreign-exchange transactions on FMDQ Exchange rose 16.43% to N496.61 trillion in the first eight months of 2026, up from N426.51 trillion recorded in the first seven months, with FX trading and government securities dominating activity.
This indicates that FMDQ Exchange’s aggregate turnover rose by N70.10 trillion between the end of July and the end of August 2026, according to FMDQ Exchange’s monthly newsletter.
Nairametrics analysis of transaction data captured in the latest edition of FMDQ monthly newsletter shows top 10 dealing member banks controlling 75.94% of overall turnover while recording an average daily turnover of N3.066 trillion ($2.234 billion per business day) across 162 trading days in January-July.
Although the origin of the heavy inflows was not explicitly stated, the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) First Quarter (Q1) 2026 Economic Report, the latest of the 2026 series, suggests that part of the N496.61 trillion turnover, equivalent to $361.96 billion, was driven by autonomous foreign-exchange inflows rather than central-bank-mediated flows.
Foreign Exchange (Spot FX and FX Derivatives combined) accounted for N192.32 trillion of the eight-month total, representing 38.73% of all FMDQ activity. A breakdown of the categories shows:
Repurchase Agreements contributed N69.99 trillion ($50.92 billion), while Eurobonds (N965.19 billion) and Sukuk Bonds (N357.26 billion) recorded minimal activity.
The CBN’s Q1 2026 Economic Report shows a significant structural shift in how foreign exchange enters the Nigerian economy.
The CBN attributed the surge in autonomous flows to three primary drivers:
Oil exports: Generated US$13.01 billion in Q1 2026, up 18.47% from Q4 2025, supported by higher crude prices and increased refined petroleum product sales
Diaspora remittances: Contributed US$5.30 billion, down 7.50% quarter-on-quarter but remaining the second-largest FX source
Portfolio investment inflows: Rose to US$6.03 billion from US$5.27 billion in Q4 2025, driven by higher purchases of Nigerian equity securities
Non-oil exports added US$2.49 billion, bringing total merchandise export earnings to US$15.49 billion (up 15.96% QoQ).
FMDQ data for January-July 2026 underscores market concentration among major banking players:
Products recording zero turnover during the period included CBN Special Bills, Promissory Notes, Money Market Derivatives, Commercial Papers, and Other Bonds, reflecting participant preferences for liquid, transparent instruments.
The data reveals a capital market increasingly weaned from central-bank interventions and orchestrations.
The challenge ahead lies in translating N496.61 trillion in market turnover and US$21.15 billion in autonomous FX inflows into durable credit expansion for the real economy, rather than hoarding on balance sheets or speculative repositioning.
