The Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Emomotimi Agama, has called for sustained policy consistency and operational resilience across Nigeria’s financial system following the country’s placement on the S&P Dow Jones Indices (S&P DJI) 2027 Watchlist for possible reclassification from a Standalone to a Frontier Market.
In a strategy paper titled “Nigeria’s Path to Index Reclassification: A Unified Strategy on Policy Consistency and Operational Resilience,” Agama described the S&P DJI decision, alongside an ongoing Frontier Market review by FTSE Russell, as Nigeria’s biggest opportunity in a decade to restore global investor confidence and attract increased foreign portfolio investment.
He said Nigeria has moved beyond the phase of introducing reforms, noting that international index providers are now assessing whether existing policies are implemented consistently and whether the country’s financial market infrastructure can perform reliably under both normal and stressed conditions.
“The reform programme is complete; the evidence programme now begins,” Agama stated, stressing that the country’s priority should be to demonstrate the effectiveness of reforms already implemented rather than introducing new policy measures.
According to him, S&P DJI acknowledged improvements in Nigeria’s regulatory environment, transparency, enforcement and market integrity but made it clear that the country’s assessment would depend on consistent policy implementation and operational resilience throughout the observation period extending through the remainder of 2026.
Agama noted that the ongoing review by FTSE Russell was partly triggered by Nigeria’s successful migration to a T+1 settlement cycle in June 2026, a development that places the country ahead of many frontier and several emerging markets in settlement efficiency.
He explained that although S&P DJI and FTSE Russell apply different methodologies, both are evaluating similar indicators, including foreign exchange repatriation, settlement integrity, regulatory consistency and the reliability of market infrastructure.
The SEC Director-General warned that policy reversals, discretionary regulatory actions, retroactive directives or restrictions on foreign exchange access could weaken Nigeria’s chances of regaining Frontier Market status.
He identified five critical pillars required by global index providers: durability of the foreign exchange regime, consistent regulatory enforcement, avoidance of retroactive policy changes, effective coordination among fiscal, monetary and regulatory authorities, and predictable enforcement of investor rights through the judicial system.
On operational resilience, Agama said Nigeria must sustain strong performance under its new T+1 settlement regime, ensure efficient foreign exchange repatriation, maintain deep and liquid FX markets, strengthen market infrastructure, guarantee orderly trading during periods of volatility and deliver uninterrupted performance throughout the review period.
To coordinate the reclassification process, the SEC has proposed the establishment of an Index Reclassification Steering Committee comprising the Commission, the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Federal Ministry of Finance, the Federal Inland Revenue Service, the Nigerian Exchange, the Central Securities Clearing System and FMDQ.
The Commission also plans to publish a quarterly Reclassification Evidence Pack containing certified data on settlement performance, foreign exchange repatriation timelines, market liquidity, system resilience, regulatory enforcement and dispute resolution. The reports will be submitted simultaneously to S&P DJI, FTSE Russell and MSCI.
Agama further disclosed that the SEC would engage global custodian banks ahead of the third-quarter 2026 survey to resolve operational concerns before they are reported to the index providers.
He cautioned that Nigeria must avoid actions capable of undermining the review process, including foreign exchange restrictions during periods of market stress, uncoordinated fiscal or tax measures, infrastructure failures and negative feedback from global custodians.
According to the implementation timeline outlined in the strategy paper, the SEC intends to establish the steering committee and issue its first evidence report in the third quarter of 2026, followed by technical submissions to S&P DJI and FTSE Russell before the end of the year, with sustained engagement through the 2027 country classification review.
Agama expressed confidence that if the proposed framework is implemented faithfully, Nigeria’s reclassification would rest on “an unbroken, independently certified record of performance” rather than advocacy, significantly boosting the country’s prospects of regaining Frontier Market status in 2027.
