Nigeria’s capital market is setting its sights on a new era of efficiency, with key stakeholders initiating plans to transition the stock market to an ambitious T+1 (Trade Day plus one day) settlement cycle, following the successful implementation of the T+2 (Trade Day plus two days) system today, Monday, December 1, 2025.
The push for a 24-hour settlement system is being championed by the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX Group) and the Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc, who view the acceleration as the next crucial step in aligning the market with global best practices and significantly boosting domestic and foreign investor confidence.
The Immediate Victory: T+3 to T+2
The move to the T+2 cycle, effective today, means that investors who trade shares will now receive their cash or securities two days after the transaction date (T), a reduction from the previous three days.
This is a major operational milestone that brings Nigeria in line with many developed markets and key emerging economies. The benefits of this shift include, a reduced counterparty risk which means the shorter the settlement window, the less time there is for a default to occur between the trade date and the settlement date; and enhanced liquidity meaning funds are freed up faster, allowing investors to reinvest their capital more quickly, thereby increasing market turnover.
The New Target: T+1 and Global Alignment
The ultimate target is the T+1 settlement cycle, a system where trades are settled within 24 hours. The drive is necessitated by global movements; key markets like the United States and Canada have either implemented or are finalizing their own shift to T+1.
Mr. Haruna Jalo-Waziri, the CEO of the CSCS, confirmed that while the T+2 adoption is a success, the CSCS is already working with regulators and the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) to map out the technological and operational requirements for the next jump.
“We have successfully de-risked the system from T+3 to T+2. Our next logical target, and the one that will truly place us in the league of the most efficient frontier markets, is T+1,” Jalo-Waziri stated.
Implementing T+1 requires significant investment in straight-through processing (STP), where trades are executed without any manual intervention, ensuring real-time communication between brokers, the exchange, and the clearing house.
TheLink News Analysis: Efficiency vs. Infrastructure Reality
The pursuit of a T+1 cycle demonstrates the capital market’s ambition, but TheLink News cautions that the jump will demand a massive overhaul of existing infrastructure and processes to overcome Nigeria’s unique operational challenges.
Noting a strong indication for a technology stress test because T+1 mandates zero tolerance for latency. The Nigerian capital market infrastructure, including clearing systems, settlement banks, and broker platforms, must be tested for continuous, real-time, error-free operation. A single failure point, such as an unreliable power grid or internet connectivity issues, could paralyze the entire settlement process.
Furthermore, this poses a custodian and foreign investor challenge because a 24-hour cycle drastically compresses the time for foreign institutional investors to execute complex cross-border payments and mandatory compliance checks. Global custodians and sub-custodians will need iron-clad assurance of Nigeria’s banking sector speed and FX convertibility to meet the T+1 deadline, otherwise, it could ironically deter, rather than attract, foreign capital.
There is also the issue of regulatory harmony as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) must ensure that all market operators, large and small, are technologically equipped and legally compliant to meet the severe time constraints. Failure to achieve sector-wide uniformity could result in systemic risk.
The move to T+1 is achievable, but it requires more than intent; it demands an unprecedented level of technological collaboration, infrastructure investment, and unwavering regulatory enforcement to manage the operational risks inherent in an accelerated timeline.
