The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) has expanded its trading hours from 9am to 4pm WAT, in a bid to enhance market liquidity and price discovery, and broaden investor access.
The shift, which has been approved by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Nigeria, is set to come into effect from 27 April 2026, and is expected to provide investors with greater flexibility, by gaining improved responsiveness to market-moving information, and supporting broader market participation.
Specifically, the new expansion will see the market opening shifting from 9.30am to 9am WAT, while the close will extend from the current 2.30pm to 4pm WAT.
The SEC Nigeria has also confirmed that the authorisation comes after extensive stakeholder engagement, and NGX Regulation will provide robust oversight, to ensure the transition to the extended model will be smooth, and maintain transparency and investor protection.
Moreover, the trading hours expansion follows recent news that index provider FTSE Russell is set to shift Nigeria from an unclassified to frontier market status, effective 21 September 2026.
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The news, announced in April 2026, marks a reversion of the country’s downgrade to unclassified status in September 2023, and is expected to boost foreign portfolio investment inflows into Nigerian equities.
The reclassification, alongside the expanded trading hours is also set to bolster Nigeria’s positioning on the global stage.