Nigerian Exchange Group Plc said first-quarter revenue more than doubled as increased trading activity and stronger investment income boosted earnings at Nigeria’s bourse operator.

Revenue climbed 103 per cent to N7.22bn in the three months ended March 31, from N3.56bn a year earlier, according to the company’s unaudited financial statements.

NGX Group makes money from operating Nigeria’s stock exchange and related capital market businesses. Every time investors buy or sell shares, bonds or other securities on the exchange, NGX earns fees from brokers and market participants.

According to the report available on its website, profit after tax rose 94 per cent to N4.09bn, while pretax profit advanced to N5.98bn from N2.49bn in the corresponding period of 2025.

The exchange operator’s total income increased to N7.8bn from N4.58bn, supported by a jump in income from equity-accounted investees, which rose to N2.03bn from N593.6m.

Operating profit climbed to N3.95bn, compared with N2.15bn a year earlier.

The stronger earnings came despite a rise in costs. Personnel expenses increased by about 51 per cent to N1.85bn, while other operating expenses rose 67 per cent to N1.8bn.

Nigeria’s equities market has seen renewed investor activity in recent months as domestic institutional investors increased participation amid easing foreign-exchange volatility and expectations of improved macroeconomic stability.

A key pillar of the reforms was the signing of the Investment and Securities Act 2025 on March 31 last year, replacing the 2007 legislation and expanding the powers of the Securities and Exchange Commission over digital assets, commodities trading and derivatives markets.

The law also introduced tougher penalties for Ponzi schemes, including fines of up to N20m and prison terms of as much as 10 years, while granting tax exemptions for collective investment schemes as Nigeria seeks closer alignment with International Organisation of Securities Commissions standards.

Tinubu also reconstituted the SEC board in April 2024, appointing Mairiga Aliyu Katuka as chairman and Emomotimi Agama as director-general in a move aimed at tightening market oversight and deepening investor confidence.

The reforms have coincided with stronger activity on the Nigerian Exchange, which crossed a market capitalisation milestone of N100tn in January 2026.

Banking sector reforms have also supported market activity. The Central Bank of Nigeria in March 2024 directed lenders to raise fresh capital by March 2026, requiring international banks to maintain minimum capital of N500bn and national banks N200bn.

By the March 2026 deadline, most banks had completed recapitalisation exercises that collectively raised more than N4tn from domestic and foreign investors, helping to drive liquidity into the equities market.