Nigeria’s Capital Importation Surges 88% to $23.2bn in 2025
Nigeria recorded a significant boost in foreign investment as total capital importation surged by 88.5% year-on-year, reaching $23.21 billion in 2025, up from $12.31 billion in 2024.
Analysis of the latest National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) Capital Importation Report reveals a resilient upward trend throughout the year, despite a brief dip in the second quarter.
Quarterly Performance Breakdown
The flow of capital into the Nigerian economy maintained steady momentum across the four quarters of 2025:
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Q1’25: Opened strong at $5.64 billion.
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Q2’25: Saw a marginal decline of 9.2% to $5.12 billion.
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Q3’25: Rebounded by 17.4% to reach $6.01 billion.
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Q4’25: Peaked at $6.44 billion, representing a 7.15% increase from the preceding quarter and a 26.6% jumpcompared to Q4’24.
Portfolio Investment Leads Inflows
According to the NBS, Portfolio Investment remained the primary driver of foreign capital, accounting for $5.49 billion (85.14%) of total inflows in the final quarter. This was followed by:
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Other Investment: $599.65 million (9.31%)
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Foreign Direct Investment (FDI): $357.80 million (5.55%)
Banking Sector Dominates
The Banking sector emerged as the top destination for foreign capital in Q4’25, attracting $3.85 billion, or nearly 60% of total quarterly inflows. The Financing sector followed with $1.94 billion (30.15%), while Production and Manufacturing received $308.93 million (4.79%).
Top Sources of Capital
The United Kingdom maintained its position as the leading source of investment into Nigeria, contributing $3.73 billion (57.94%) of the total. Other major contributors included:
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United States: $837.91 million (13%)
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South Africa: $516.96 million (8.02%)
