The Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) is the official market for trading shares in Nigeria. This means that retail investors and retail traders can only trade the shares of companies that are publicly quoted on the NGX.

While stock trading and investment seem like tedious, intimidating, and overwhelming processes for novice traders, it is a simple process once you understand the fundamentals of stock trading and investment.

You can learn more about stock trading by:

• Reading guides, tutorials, educational trading, and investment eBooks.
• Watching YouTube videos, how-to videos.
• Attending lessons, courses, webinars, seminars, and other classroom activities.
• Registering a demo account with a stockbroker and using virtual funds to buy and sell stocks in a risk-free environment.

The Nigerian Exchange Group

The Nigerian Exchange Group Plc, formerly known as the Nigerian Stock Exchange, before it was demutualised in March, is a group that services the largest economy in Africa, strengthening the competitiveness of various African economies in achieving overall global prosperity.

Apart from listing a wide range of shares, NGX Group also allows for the trading of various securities and is involved in licensing, market data solutions, ancillary technology, regulatory issues, real estate, and much more. 

There are 360 listings on NGX Group, at the time of writing, and it is headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria. Early in the year, NGX Group started providing liquidity to shareholders after it was listed on the NASD OTC.

After its demutualisation in March, NGX Group distributed 1,964,115,918 ordinary shares that were 50 kobo each to more than 200 dealing members as well as ordinary members who subsequently became shareholders.

How to buy shares in Nigeria

To buy shares in Nigeria, you must have disposable income that you can put towards trading and investment activities. You also need to identify a stockbroker according to your unique trading and investment needs and objectives that can facilitate your trades.

It is not possible to purchase or sell shares from NGX Group directly, which is why hundreds of brokers accommodate Nigerian traders, offering them some of the best trading conditions, innovative trading technology, and competitive trading and non-trading fees.

When you register a trading account with a stockbroker, it is important to remember that there are spreads, commissions, and several other fees that you must confirm with your broker before you register an account, making sure that you can afford these fees in addition to any losses you may incur.

Before You Register a Trading Account

Before you register a live trading account with a stockbroker, you must register an electronic account with the Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS). To open this account, your stockbroker will provide you with the necessary form and you will receive a unique CSCS account number once registration is complete.

This account number will appear on all shares that you trade, allowing CSCS to track the record of all your holdings. To register your CSCS account, you will need:

• A valid form of identification can be any Identity card or document, passport, or driver’s licence.
• Two coloured passport-sized photographs.
• Proof of residence

Fund your account and start trading

Once you are ready to start trading, you can fund your account and proceed to start building your portfolio by selecting your shares and sending the order to your broker through the trading platform that your stockbroker offers. Read more: Nigerian Exchange launches new corporate identity