Nume Ekeghe
Nigeria’s fixed income market remained robust in July 2026, with transactions across Open Market Operation (OMO) Bills, Nigeria Treasury Bills, Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) Bonds and Sukuk reaching a combined face value of N29.36 trillion from 9,875 trades.
According to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Fixed Income Dashboard, OMO Bills accounted for the largest share of market turnover, recording a face value of N16.44 trillion across 2,809 trades, underscoring investors’ continued appetite for the CBN’s short-term liquidity management instruments amid elevated yields.
Treasury Bills ranked second with a traded face value of N6.98 trillion from 3,700 trades, the highest number of transactions among all fixed income instruments during the period. FGN Bonds followed with N5.87 trillion across 3,343 trades, while Sukuk instruments recorded a comparatively modest N69.11 billion from 23 trades.
In terms of market participation, Treasury Bills attracted the broadest investor base, with 30 participants, followed by OMO Bills with 25 participants and FGN Bonds with 24 participants. Sukuk recorded six market participants during the month. Overall, 31 participants executed transactions across the fixed income market in July.
The yield curve continued to reflect Nigeria’s high interest rate environment.
For OMO Bills, closing yields ranged between 20.47 per cent and 21.62 per cent, maintaining their position as the highest-yielding instruments in the market.
Treasury Bills also traded at elevated levels, with yields ranging from 17.62 per cent to 20.91 per cent, reflecting sustained investor demand despite relatively tight monetary conditions.
Across the FGN Bond curve, yields remained broadly stable, ranging from approximately 15.5 per cent to 18.6 per cent across maturities extending to 27 years. The long end of the curve continued to trade around the 18 per cent mark, suggesting that investors are demanding relatively high returns to hold longer-dated government securities.
The trading pattern highlights investors’ preference for short-dated government securities as elevated interest rates continue to make money market instruments attractive. At the same time, the sizeable volume traded in FGN Bonds indicates sustained institutional demand from pension funds, banks and asset managers seeking duration and stable returns.