Daba, Coronation Open Nigerian Market Access to Global Investors

Daba, Coronation Open Nigerian Market Access to Global Investors

Daba Finance and Coronation have agreed a distribution arrangement that will give eligible investors outside Nigeria digital access to Nigerian capital-market products, as the country's equities rally and it prepares to return to FTSE Russell’s Frontier Market index universe later this month. The companies announced the agreement on September 2 in Lagos and Miami.

Eligible users will access Nigerian investment products through the Daba platform, while Coronation Securities and Coronation Asset Management provide the underlying services within Nigeria’s regulated market. Daba Advisors, the group’s US investment adviser, is registered with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Eligibility will depend on the laws of each user’s jurisdiction.

The partnership covers 3 areas: market intelligence, investor education and digital access. Daba will add Nigerian market news, data, analysis and research supported by Coronation. The companies will also offer courses through Daba Academy and Coronation Investment Academy, along with webinars focused on Nigerian securities, risks, institutions and market structure.

The live service supports digital onboarding, multi-currency funding, trade or investment requests and reporting. Daba said it will manage the user experience while Coronation provides Nigerian market products and expertise. Coronation Securities is registered with Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission and is a trading license holder of Nigerian Exchange Ltd., while Coronation Asset Management is registered as a fund and portfolio manager.

The launch comes as Nigerian equities remain among Africa’s strongest performers in 2026. The NGX All-Share Index ended August at 244,199.39 points, up about 57% for the year, while market capitalization stood at about ₦157.74 trillion. The exchange touched a record market value above ₦160 trillion in August. Nigeria is also set to rejoin FTSE Russell’s Frontier Market classification from September 21 after improvements in foreign-exchange liquidity, repatriation and market access.

Foreign participation, however, remains a smaller part of trading activity. Domestic investors accounted for about 91% of NGX transactions in May, according to exchange data. That gap gives the Daba-Coronation arrangement a clear target: investors who follow Nigeria but have lacked a simple route to participate. Daba says it serves more than 250,000 customers across the US, Europe, Canada and Africa. Chief Executive Officer Boum III Jr. said the aim is to combine Coronation’s Nigerian market expertise with Daba’s technology and international reach. Access remains subject to local eligibility rules, and the arrangement does not relate to any specific securities offering.

The bigger story is not just a distribution deal. Nigeria is trying to rebuild its place in global portfolios after years in which foreign-exchange shortages, capital controls and repatriation delays made the market harder for offshore investors to use. That backdrop is changing. FTSE Russell plans to restore Nigeria to Frontier Market status on September 21, while regulators have moved equities and commodities to T+1 settlement and clarified that foreign portfolio investors do not need to prefund trades. The NGX rally also gives international investors more reason to pay attention: the All-Share Index was up about 57% in 2026 through August, even after a small monthly decline. Yet trading remains dominated by Nigerian investors, showing that better market performance has not translated into broad foreign participation. Daba and Coronation are positioning their partnership around that gap. Coronation brings local brokerage, asset-management and research infrastructure; Daba brings a digital platform, international distribution and investor education. The test will be whether easier onboarding, multi-currency funding and clearer research can turn interest in Nigerian assets into sustained cross-border flows. If it does, the model could show how African capital markets can expand distribution without moving regulated market functions outside their home jurisdiction.