Nigeria’s financial transactions with the rest of the world improved markedly in the third quarter of 2025 (Q3’25), as the country recorded a Balance of Payments (BOP) surplus of $4.60 billion, reversing the deficit of $0.27 billion posted in the preceding quarter, Q2’25.
This development means Nigeria received more foreign money than it spent during the quarter. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) disclosed this in its Balance of Payments Highlights for Q3’25 released yesterday.
According to the apex bank, the improvement was driven mainly by a rise in external reserves and better management of financial flows, even though earnings from regular trade and income weakened.
The strongest boost came from the financial account, which tracks investments, loans and savings between Nigeria and other countries.
In Q2’25, Nigeria was a net borrower, taking in about $6.9 billion more than it invested or saved abroad. By Q3’25, this changed, with the country recording net lending of $0.32 billion. This indicates that Nigeria saved more foreign assets than it borrowed during the period.
A key factor was the increase in external reserves, which rose from $37.81 billion at the end of June to $42.77 billion by the end of September, effectively strengthening the country’s foreign savings buffer.
