get latest news from West Africa

Kayode Tokede
Following FTSE Russell reclassification of Nigeria’s from unclassified to Frontier Market status in its interim review, the market valuation of MTN Nigeria Communications Plc Plc and 12 others increased to N93.6 trillion on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX).
These 13 stocks over the years have maintained high participation of foreign investors amid their impressive fundamentals on the bourse.

When it was announced on April 7, 2026 of Nigeria’s reclassification, the market valuation of the exchange crossed the N130 trillion mark to sustain its positive momentum this year.
Between April 7, 2026 to April 17, 2026, the stock price of these companies have seen significant increase, gaining N8.93 trillion, leading to the likes of Seplat Energy Plc crossing the N10,000 per share mark, while MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, Dangote Cement Plc and BUA Foods Plc moving towards the N1,000 per share each on the Exchange.
THISDAY learnt that these stocks as of April 17, 2026 contributed about 66.9 per cent of the N139.827 trillion overall market valuation of the NGX.
THISDAY analysis of market data showed that MTN Nigeria Communications, followed by BUA Foods and Dangote Cement are still the most capitalised stock on the bourse.
Since the reclassification was announced April 7, 2026, the market valuation of MTN Nigeria has appreciated by N1.36 trillion as its stock price added N65.00 per share or 8.55 per cent to close at N825.00 per share.
This brings its market valuation to N17.32 trillion as of April 17, 2026.
The impressive 2025 financial year result and accounts also played a critical role in the MTN Nigeria stock. The telecommunication giant closed 2025 with N1.7trillion profit before tax, about 408.2 per cent increase over N550.3billion loss before tax in 2024. It reported N5.2trillion revenue in 2025, which is nearly 55 per cent increase over N3.36 trillion reported in 2024.
The 2025 financial year was described as a remarkable period of recovery and resilience for the firm. CEO, Dr Karl Toriola, noted that 2025 marked a significant turning point with a return to profitability and a resilient balance sheet, which ultimately supported, “accelerated network investment to enhance quality of service and user experience.”
For BUA Foods, its market valuation has appreciated by N478.8billion between April 7 to 17, 2026 as its stock price rose by N26.60 or 3.33 per cent to close April 17, 2026 at N824.60 per share. BUA Foods saw its market valuation at N14.8 trillion as of April 17, 2026.
As global investors increasingly prioritise markets with strong infrastructure, transparency, and accessibility, Nigeria’s re-entry into the FTSE Frontier Market universe underscores the critical role of market infrastructure in enabling capital formation and connecting local opportunities to global capital.
The Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian Exchange Group Plc, Temi Popoola, said: “This milestone reflects the strength of collaboration across Nigeria’s capital market ecosystem, but importantly, the deliberate efforts to strengthen the underlying market infrastructure that supports efficient trading, transparency, and investor access.
“At NGX Group, we have remained focused on building a more resilient, accessible, and globally competitive platform, and this reclassification affirms the progress made. We will continue to work closely with regulators, market operators and stakeholders to deepen reforms, address identified gaps, and sustain momentum towards higher market classifications.”
Analysts at Cordros Research in a report stated that Nigeria’s return to Frontier Market status is expected to improve market flow dynamics, with inflows projected in the conservative range of $840.00 million to $1.04 billion (N1.15 trillion to N1.42 trillion), underpinned by benchmark-driven rebalancing and incremental discretionary allocations.
“Price discovery should improve further in the market’s liquid leadership cohort: The second-order implication is on price discovery, particularly at the large-cap, liquid end of the market. Historically, foreign capital does not move evenly across the board.
“Rather, it tends to concentrate where liquidity, free float, governance visibility, and execution capacity are strongest. Specifically, the Nigerian constituents of the FTSE/JSE All Africa 40 Index comprised Dangote Cement Plc, GTCO Plc, MTN Nigeria Plc, Nestle Nigeria Plc, Seplat Energy Plc, and Zenith Bank Plc, with the MSCI Nigeria Index further incorporating Nigerian Breweries Plc and Stanbic.IBTC Holdings Plc, ”they said
“As such, the primary beneficiaries are likely to remain the highly liquid names across the Banking, Industrial Goods, and select Consumer Goods and Oil & Gas counters. As foreign participation rises, we believe market efficiency should improve, with prices clearing more effectively around earnings quality, balance sheet strength, dividend credibility, and sector-specific policy leverage.
“Put differently, the reclassification should enhance the quality of pricing in the names that dominate benchmark attention. For investors, this raises the premium on owning liquid market leaders with clean earnings visibility, a credible capital return trajectory, and the capacity to withstand institutional positioning. Overall, we view Nigeria’s return to FTSE Frontier Market status as a meaningful positive for the equities market, serving as renewed external validation of the market’s improving accessibility,” the Analysts added.