United Kingdom-based investors provided the bulk of Nigeria’s foreign capital in the first quarter of 2025, accounting for more than 65 per cent of total inflows, the latest Capital Importation report from the National Bureau of Statistics has shown.
The data revealed that capital from the UK rose to $3.68bn (N5.52tn at N1,500/$) in Q1 2025, representing 65.26 per cent of the $5.64bn total for the quarter.
This marked a 29.2 per cent increase from the $2.85bn recorded in Q4 2024 and a 103.9 per cent jump from the $1.81bn in Q1 2024.The figures underline Britain’s dominance in Nigeria’s external financing profile and its enduring role as the primary gateway for capital flows into the country.
Overall, capital importation into Nigeria stood at $5.64bn in Q1 2025, up 10.9 per cent from $5.09bn in the previous quarter and 67.1 per cent higher than the $3.38bn recorded in the same period of 2024.
The NBS report read, “Capital Importation during the reference period originated largely from the United Kingdom with $3,681.96m, showing 65.26 per cent of the total capital imported.” The PUNCH further observed that South Africa emerged as the second-largest source of capital in Q1 2025, with $501.29m, or 8.88 per cent of the total.
This was up 10.2 per cent from $454.94m in Q4 2024 but down 14 per cent compared to the $582.34m recorded a year earlier.
