Regulators signal readiness to collaborate with issuers and deal advisers as the industry calls for a stronger pipeline of investment-ready assets
LAGOS, NIGERIA, 26 October 2026: Nigeria’s financing challenge is not a shortage of capital but the absence of structures to deploy it. That was the central message of the Olaniwun Ajayi LP (OALP) Structured Finance Roundtable 2026. The Roundtable convened regulators, institutional investors, development finance institutions and corporate issuers in Lagos on 22 October under the theme “Unlocking Capital: Leveraging Structured Finance for Capital Mobilisation”. Participants set out practical steps to channel long-term domestic capital into infrastructure, housing, energy, manufacturing and other productive sectors.
Dr Emomotimi Agama, Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), delivered the keynote address. The event featured two panels moderated by Olaniwun Ajayi LP’s Ogechi Onuoha and Zikoraifechukwu Ebenebe, with speakers including Ms Omolola Oloworaran, Director-General of the National Pension Commission (PenCom), Dr Sonnie Babatunde Ayere, Founder and Group CEO of DLM Capital Group, and Mrs Eleanor Adaralegbe, CFO of Seplat Energy Plc, alongside senior executives from the IFC, Rand Merchant Bank, the Lagos Commodities and Futures Exchange, United Capital Plc, CardinalStone Pensions and Lotus Capital.
“Conventional financing structures alone cannot meet Nigeria’s long-term funding needs. Structured finance allocates risk to the parties best positioned to bear it. True sale, bankruptcy remoteness and credit enhancement are key to sound structuring, but credit enhancement cannot substitute for proper due diligence or a robust underlying asset structure,” said Mrs Yewande Senbore, Partner in charge of the Finance and Capital Markets Practice at Olaniwun Ajayi LP, in her welcome remarks.
“Why does a nation that saves for 30 years borrow for 30 days? The capital is not locked away from us; it is sitting in plain sight. What is locked is the architecture that connects it to the economy,” said Dr Emomotimi Agama, Director-General of the SEC, in his keynote address.
Dr Agama identified a major obstacle: the limited pipeline of investment-ready assets with clear title, credible cash-flow histories and bankable contractual arrangements. He referenced the Investments and Securities Act 2025 and the SEC’s ongoing review of its securitisation rules. He encouraged market participants to engage regulators early when designing new products, noting that the absence of an existing framework does not preclude an idea’s development.
The Following Were the Key Identified Priorities for Scaling Structured Finance
- Investor confidence: reliable asset-performance data, consistent reporting and repeat issuance are essential. Issuers build credibility through well-prepared transactions and smaller, successive raises, with financiers and regulators engaged as partners.
- Regulatory and tax alignment: Multiple approvals add uncertainty and cost. So does the tax treatment of asset transfers, investor distributions and special-purpose vehicles. Participants called for greater regulatory cohesion, aligned tax rules and early resolution of regulatory, tax, legal and accounting issues.
- Broader asset base: Two routes can expand what is financeable. One is commodity-linked financing, supported by exchange pricing, warehouse receipts and asset verification and grading. The other is non-interest finance linked to identifiable assets or economic activity.
- Investor-centred design: Products must clearly set out cash flows, risk allocation and exit routes, and must engage pension funds early. Economic promise alone does not make a project bankable without a credible operating track record and capable project management.
Participants concluded that scaling structured finance in Nigeria will require coordinated action across the capital market. Regulatory reform must be matched by a stronger pipeline of investment-ready assets, reliable data, transparent reporting and closer engagement between issuers, investors and regulators. The next step is to translate these priorities into transactions that can be executed, performed and repeated at scale.