The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) says it will assume direct oversight of the country’s fixed income trading and settlement platform before the end of the year.
Until now, the market infrastructure has been operated by FMDQ Group.
In a circular dated September 29 and signed by Okey Umeano, acting director of the financial markets department, the apex bank said the move is part of its ongoing reforms aimed at boosting transparency, efficiency, and regulatory oversight in the market.
The regulator said the reforms will “reposition the fixed income market as a critical enabler to support monetary policy transmission and the growth of the economy”.
Under the new plan, the CBN will manage the trading environment and handle end-to-end settlement of fixed income transactions through its existing settlement system.
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The transition will be phased to avoid market disruption. Testing of the new settlement process is scheduled for the second week of October, followed by a pilot phase that will run alongside the current structure.
If successful, full migration of settlement activities to the CBN platform is set for November 3. The new CBN-sponsored trading environment for primary dealers, market makers, pension fund administrators, and other authorised participants will launch on December 1.
The central bank said the change will strengthen market integrity, streamline operations, and create a unified framework that gives regulators full visibility of fixed income transactions.
It also called for cooperation from the Financial Markets Dealers Association (FMDA), describing the body as an important partner in the development of Nigeria’s financial markets.
