By Onu Okorie

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has said the implementation of the T+1 settlement cycle in Nigeria’s capital market is progressing smoothly, with local and international investors expressing satisfaction with the new regime.
The Director-General of the SEC, Dr. Emomotimi Agama, disclosed this in an interview with journalists in Abuja at the weekend. He was represented by the Director, Registration, Exchanges and Market Infrastructure, Mrs. Hafsat Rufai.
Agama said the transition to T+1 had enhanced the competitiveness of the Nigerian capital market while providing greater convenience and relief to market participants.
“Feedback from them has been excellent. They are happy with T+1, and the local investors are also happy with T+1,” he said.
According to him, one of the major concerns raised ahead of the implementation was the ability of investors to source funds within the available settlement window, particularly because of differences in time zones.
He explained that the decision to move the settlement deadline from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. had provided sufficient time for custodian banks representing investors to mobilise the funds required to complete transactions.
“Sometimes, in some countries, when we are closing our market at 4:00 p.m., it is still early in the day. Sometimes, it’s even longer than being early in the day; it’s midnight in some countries. And so everybody is concerned about how to source cash or how to source funds for settlement,” Agama said.
He added that the 5:00 p.m. settlement deadline had eased the pressure, noting that custodian banks now had adequate time to source funds and settle securities and cash under the delivery-versus-payment (DVP) arrangement.
Agama disclosed that no default had so far been recorded as a result of inadequate funds at the new settlement deadline.
“It’s just a matter of letting everybody understand that the settlement time is not 8:00 a.m.; it is 5:00 p.m. And by 5:00 p.m., everybody is good. So far, it has been good. Feedback has also been very excellent,” he said.
The SEC DG explained that Nigeria’s capital market had operated under a T+3 settlement cycle for several years before the regulator commenced a phased transition to shorter settlement periods.
He said the reform was designed to modernise the market, improve its competitiveness and attractiveness, increase liquidity and reduce settlement risks.
According to him, the market moved from T+3 to T+2 on November 28, 2025, before completing the transition to T+1 on June 1, 2026.
Explaining the new settlement cycle, Agama said T+1 means that transactions are settled one business day after the trade date.
“Transaction day or the trade day when your shares are bought or sold on a particular day, that is day T, and then plus one, which is the current settlement cycle, means that when you buy your shares, say for instance you buy today, being a Monday, the shares will settle in your account by 5:00 p.m. tomorrow,” he said.
He said shortening the settlement period would enable investors to receive their securities or proceeds from sales more quickly.
Agama explained that under the former T+2 arrangement, investors who traded on a Monday would generally have to wait until Wednesday to receive their securities or cash, with settlement taking place by 8:00 a.m.