NIGERIA · LAGOS · MARKETS
The company that runs Nigeria’s stock exchange lifted its pre-tax profit 83% in nine months, but almost all of that gain came before July.
Key Facts
- —Profit Pre-tax profit rose 83% to ₦20.58 billion (about US$15.5 million) in nine months.
- —Revenue Up 80% to ₦27.26 billion (about US$20.5 million); transaction fees were 76% of it.
- —Third quarter Pre-tax profit rose just 1% to ₦5.83 billion (about US$4.4 million) against a year earlier.
- —Dividends paid ₦8.23 billion (about US$6.2 million) in nine months, up 87% on last year.
- —The company Holding company of the Nigerian Exchange in Lagos; shares trade as NGXGROUP.
Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX Group), the listed company that owns the stock exchange in Lagos, made a pre-tax profit of ₦20.58 billion (about US$15.5 million) in the nine months to Wednesday 30 September 2026, up 83% on a year earlier. The unaudited accounts, which the board approved on Tuesday 20 October, compare with ₦11.23 billion (about US$8.4 million) in the same period of 2025.
Transaction fees, which the group links to market activity, made up 76% of its revenue, so the accounts work as a rough gauge of how busy trading in Nigeria has been. For investors outside Nigeria the headline looks strong, but the quarterly figures show that growth slowed sharply after June.
In Plain English
- NGX Group: the company that owns the Nigerian Exchange (the market itself), its regulation arm and a property arm. Temi Popoola is its group managing director and chief executive.
- Pre-tax profit: what is left after running costs and before income tax. At NGX Group it includes a share of the profits of companies it part-owns.
- Transaction fees: the group’s largest income line, which it ties to how much trading takes place on the exchange.
- CSCS: Central Securities Clearing System Plc, a depository and settlement agency for traded securities in Nigeria. NGX Group owns 43.52% of it.
The Nine-Month Results
Revenue rose 80% to ₦27.26 billion (about US$20.5 million) from ₦15.16 billion (about US$11.4 million), and total income including other income reached ₦29.57 billion (about US$22.2 million). Operating costs grew more slowly, up 57% to ₦14.71 billion (about US$11.0 million), so operating profit climbed 74% to ₦14.87 billion (about US$11.2 million).
Pre-tax profit of ₦20.58 billion (about US$15.5 million) is about 32% more than the ₦15.6 billion (about US$11.7 million) the group earned before tax in all of 2025. After tax, profit rose 86% to ₦14.69 billion (about US$11.0 million) from ₦7.88 billion (about US$5.9 million).
How We Converted Naira to Dollars
- Market close, Friday 23 October 2026: ₦1,331.58 per US$1, used for every dollar figure in this article, for both years.
- Central bank official rate, same day: ₦1,361.34 per US$1, which would put nine-month pre-tax profit at about US$15.1 million.
- Why it matters: last year’s figures use today’s rate, so the dollar comparisons show naira growth only.
What Drove NGX Group Profit Growth
Transaction fees more than doubled, up 112% to ₦20.68 billion (about US$15.5 million) from ₦9.74 billion (about US$7.3 million), and they supplied ₦10.94 billion (about US$8.2 million) of the ₦12.10 billion (about US$9.1 million) rise in revenue. Listing fees, charged to companies with securities on the exchange, grew 24% to ₦3.73 billion (about US$2.8 million).
Income from treasury investments slipped 3% to ₦2.07 billion (about US$1.6 million), and other income fell 17% to ₦2.31 billion (about US$1.7 million) as net currency losses widened to ₦603.30 million (about US$453,000). The group also had no finance costs, against ₦708.85 million (about US$532,000) a year earlier.
Its share of profit from two part-owned companies rose 70% to ₦5.72 billion (about US$4.3 million), which is 28% of pre-tax profit. Almost all of it, ₦5.71 billion (about US$4.3 million), came from CSCS, in which NGX Group holds 43.52%, while NG Clearing, in which it holds 27.7%, moved to a small profit from a loss.
A Slower Third Quarter
“Our first-half results demonstrate the strength and scalability of NGX Group’s business model.”
Temi Popoola, group chief executive, in the first-half results statement, July 2026
The nine-month total hides a clear slowdown. Pre-tax profit for July to September was ₦5.83 billion (about US$4.4 million), up just 1% from ₦5.77 billion (about US$4.3 million) in the third quarter of 2025.
That compares with an average of about ₦7.38 billion (about US$5.5 million) a quarter in the first half, when pre-tax profit rose 170% to ₦14.76 billion (about US$11.1 million). Profit after tax for the quarter fell 7% to ₦4.33 billion (about US$3.3 million), and operating profit slipped 4% to ₦4.25 billion (about US$3.2 million), even though revenue grew 36% to ₦9.66 billion (about US$7.3 million).
Costs, not fees, explain the gap: operating costs rose 63% in the quarter and other income fell 43% to ₦573.76 million (about US$431,000), while transaction fees still grew 54%. Personnel expenses alone more than doubled to ₦3.38 billion (about US$2.5 million) from ₦1.63 billion (about US$1.2 million), and neither the statements nor any commentary available when this article was written explains why.
Dividends, Cash and the Share Price
The cash-flow statement shows ₦8.23 billion (about US$6.2 million) of dividends paid in the nine months, up 87% from ₦4.41 billion (about US$3.3 million) a year earlier. By The Rio Times’ own arithmetic, that matches the final dividend for 2025 of ₦2.00 (about US$0.0015) a share on the 2.20 billion shares then in issue plus the first-half interim dividend of ₦1.30 (about US$0.001) a share on all 2.94 billion shares now in issue.
NGX Group Shares at a Glance
- Closing price, Friday 23 October 2026: ₦152.50 (about US$0.11) a share.
- Shares in issue: 2.94 billion, after the one-for-three bonus issue.
- Value of the company at that price: about ₦448 billion (about US$337 million), The Rio Times’ calculation.
- Shares traded that day: about 1.08 million.
Shareholders approved a bonus issue of one new share for every three held on Wednesday 29 April 2026, which raised the number of shares to 2.94 billion. Cash and equivalents fell 37% to ₦1.61 billion (about US$1.2 million) from ₦2.55 billion (about US$1.9 million) at the end of 2025, while holdings of investment securities rose 28% to ₦35.70 billion (about US$26.8 million).
What It Means for US Readers
NGX Group shares are quoted in naira on the Nigerian Exchange under the ticker NGXGROUP, so a US investor’s result depends on the naira as well as on the company. On Friday the market rate and the central bank’s official rate differed by about 2%, which moves every dollar figure in this article by the same amount.
The company is small by US standards, with nine-month pre-tax profit of about US$15.5 million and a market value of about US$337 million. Because transaction fees supply most of its revenue, its results rise and fall mainly with trading activity on the exchange, which the group itself credited in July for the first-half jump in fees.
This is a company news report, not investment advice. Anyone weighing Nigerian assets should look at the naira and local interest rates as well as at a single company’s results.
Pre-tax profit rose 83% over nine months, but only 1% in the third quarter.
What Is Not Known
The statements are unaudited, and The Rio Times did not find a separate management commentary on the nine months. Why personnel costs doubled in the third quarter, and whether that level will last, is therefore not known.
The accounts do not set out how much was traded on the exchange or how much of it came from foreign investors. Nor did we find an announcement saying whether the board will declare another dividend for 2026 after the first-half interim payment.
It is also not known whether profit from part-owned companies such as CSCS, which supplied 28% of pre-tax profit, will keep growing. One company’s numbers cannot show where the Nigerian market goes next, and the third-quarter pause may prove temporary.
The Rio Times could not confirm exactly when the group first filed the statements with the exchange. The file on the group’s website is dated Friday 23 October 2026, and the board approved the accounts on Tuesday 20 October.
Connected Coverage
- Nigerian Exchange Group Plc, Company Intelligence profile (facts and figures on the company)
- Nigeria Economy 2026 (our guide to the economy and its key players)
- Foreign Powers and Investors in Nigeria 2026 (who has money and influence in the country)
- Lagos City Guide for Expats and Visitors (the city where the exchange is based)
- Nigerian Exchange (NGX): how it works (who runs it and what companies must disclose)
- Foreign Transactions on NGX Hit Highest Since 2007 (our news piece on foreign trading)
Frequently Asked Questions
What is NGX Group?
NGX Group is the listed holding company of the Nigerian Exchange in Lagos, formerly the Nigerian Stock Exchange. It became a shareholder-owned group in 2021 and owns the exchange, a regulation company and a real-estate company.
How much profit did NGX Group make in nine months?
Pre-tax profit was ₦20.58 billion (about US$15.5 million), up 83%, in the nine months to 30 September 2026. Profit after tax was ₦14.69 billion (about US$11.0 million), up 86%, and the figures are unaudited.
What drove the profit rise?
Transaction fees more than doubled to ₦20.68 billion (about US$15.5 million), and the group’s share of profit from part-owned companies rose 70% to ₦5.72 billion (about US$4.3 million). Listing fees grew 24%.
Did profit keep growing in the third quarter?
Growth almost stopped. Pre-tax profit for July to September rose 1% to ₦5.83 billion (about US$4.4 million), while profit after tax fell 7%.
Did NGX Group pay dividends in 2026?
Yes. The cash-flow statement shows ₦8.23 billion (about US$6.2 million) paid in the nine months, which matches the 2025 final dividend of ₦2.00 (about US$0.0015) a share plus the first-half interim dividend of ₦1.30 (about US$0.001) a share.
Sources: Nigerian Exchange Group Plc, Unaudited Financial Statements for the period ended 30 September 2026 (NGX Group Q3 2026, approved by the board on 20 October 2026), NGX Group, first-half 2026 earnings release, July 2026, NGX Group, full-year 2025 press release, 27 February 2026, NGX Group, About us, Nigerian Stock Exchange, demutualisation completed, 10 March 2021, Nigerian Exchange, equities statistics for 23 October 2026, Central Bank of Nigeria, exchange rates, 23 October 2026, Nairametrics, NGX Group’s pre-tax profit rises 83%, 24 October 2026. All retrieved 25 October 2026. Dollar figures use the market close of ₦1,331.58 per US$1 on 23 October 2026. The first-half quarterly average, the per-share dividend sums and the value of the company at the closing price are The Rio Times’ own calculations from the published figures.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief
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