Equities Market Declines 0.98% As Trading Volume Doubles

The Nigerian equities market closed the week ended October 31, 2025, on a bearish note as investors recorded losses across major sectors despite a significant surge in trading volume and value.

A total turnover of 7.479 billion shares valued at ₦145.43bn was exchanged in 159,487 deals, representing a sharp increase compared to 3.695 billion shares worth ₦129.89bn traded in 148,077 deals recorded in the previous week.

However, the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) All-Share Index (ASI) and market capitalization declined by 0.98 per cent, closing at 154,126.46 points and ₦97.83tn, respectively.

The negative performance reflected sustained profit-taking and cautious investor sentiment amid mixed corporate earnings releases and macroeconomic concerns.

Performance across sectoral indices was broadly negative. All other indices closed lower except for the NGX AFR Div Yield Index, NGX MERI Growth Index, NGX Oil and Gas Index, NGX Sovereign Bond Index, and NGX Commodity Index, which appreciated by 0.73 per cent, 1.01 per cent, 0.30 per cent, 0.50 per cent, and 0.15 per cent, respectively.

The Financial Services Industry maintained its dominance on the activity chart, leading by volume with 6.639 billion shares valued at ₦74.63bn billion traded in 65,294 deals. This accounted for 88.77 per cent of the total equity turnover volume and 51.32 per cent of total value.

The Services Industry followed with 215.575 million shares worth ₦2.71bn in 9,036 deals, while the Consumer Goods Industry ranked third, recording 125.931 million shares valued at ₦7.33bn traded in 18,857 deals.

Market activity was largely driven by transactions in Cornerstone Insurance Plc, Wema Bank Plc, and Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc (GTCO). The trio accounted for 5.268 billion shares valued at ₦48.96bn exchanged in 9,663 deals, representing 70.43 per cent and 33.67 per cent of the total equity turnover volume and value, respectively.

Investor sentiment was broadly bearish during the week as 29 equities appreciated in price, a decline from 44 gainers in the previous week. Conversely, 70 equities recorded price depreciation, compared to 49 in the preceding week, while 47 equities closed unchanged, down from 53 previously.

Analysts say the week’s performance reflects profit-taking in large-cap stocks and selective positioning by investors ahead of year-end rebalancing. Market watchers expect trading in the coming week to be influenced by further earnings disclosures and macroeconomic indicators, including interest rate movements and inflation trends.

MTN Fintech Revenue Rises 72.5% To ₦131.6bn

Chris Ugwu

MTN Nigeria Communications Plc has reported a 72.5 per cent surge in Fintech revenue to ₦131.62bn for the nine months ended September 2025, up from ₦76.31bn in the corresponding period of 2024.

The growth was largely driven by higher interest income from deposits, the expansion of advanced financial services, and the onboarding of high-value customers.

According to the telecom giant, customer deposits rose sharply by 80.5 per cent compared to December 2024, reflecting strong adoption of its mobile money and digital financial platforms.

The company said the impressive growth followed a comprehensive revamp of its customer acquisition strategy, which helped expand active wallets to 2.9 million as of September 2025.

In addition, the number of active agents increased by 73.6 per cent, while active merchants grew by 42.6 per cent over the same period, underscoring MTN Nigeria’s deliberate focus on optimising distribution quality and strengthening the sustainability of its Fintech ecosystem.

The company said these initiatives are positioning it for long-term growth and deeper financial inclusion across Nigeria.

Meanwhile, data revenue also recorded strong growth, rising by 73.2 per cent, supported by higher usage levels, a growing active user base, increased data traffic, and price adjustments.

This performance, MTN said, was driven by customer value management initiatives and ongoing investments in network capacity.

Data traffic rose by 36.3 per cent year-on-year, while average usage per subscriber increased by 20.8 per cent to 13.2GB. Smartphone penetration improved to 65.1 per cent, underpinning the rising demand for high-speed connectivity and digital services.

The company’s home broadband business also gained momentum, adding 281,000 new subscribers in the third quarter and expanding its customer base to 4 million.

MTN said this growth reflects the rising demand for high-speed internet and the relevance of its fixed wireless access (FWA) and fibre solutions.

MTN added that it is accelerating fibre deployment to deliver ultra-fast broadband to households while easing pressure on its mobile network, a strategy it says will enable it to capture long-term value in Nigeria’s fast-evolving digital economy.

Voice revenue also grew by 41.9 per cent during the review period, supported by a growing subscriber base, price adjustments, and customer value management initiatives.

The company noted that relatively low price elasticity helped sustain momentum in the voice segment, which continues to play a vital role within its diversified revenue portfolio.

Overall, MTN Nigeria said the strong Fintech and data performance demonstrates its progress in building a more integrated digital and financial ecosystem that supports customer inclusion and long-term shareholder value.

The CEO, Karl Toriola said the company delivered robust and broad-based revenue growth with momentum accelerating in Q3 adding that the double-digit increase across all key revenue segments underscored the strength and diversification of its service offerings. Service revenue was up by 57.5 per cent YoY (Q3 2025: up 62.9 per cent), driven by strong demand and price adjustments.

According to him, cost pressures were contained through savings from our renegotiated tower lease agreements and continued progress in our broader expense efficiency initiatives, supported by the strengthening of the naira against the dollar.

As a result, EBITDA more than doubled, rising 123.0 per cent to N1.9trn, with a significant 15.1pp margin expansion to 51.4 per cent, in line with guidance. This highlights disciplined execution and strong operational leverage in our business.

“We reported a PAT of N750.2bn, up by 245.7 per cent, marking a turnaround from the N514.9bn loss after tax in the prior year. In line with guidance, we have returned to positive retained earnings and shareholders’ equity positions, with improvements to positive N142.7bn (December 2024: negative N607.5bn) and positive N293.1bn (December 2024: negative N458.0bn), respectively.

“In addition, free cash flow of N742.6bn was 38.5 per cent higher, demonstrating robust underlying cash generation, counterbalanced by an acceleration in capex deployment.

“We anticipate a moderation in our capex profile in Q4 to align with our full-year objective, which should support a stronger free cash flow generation.

“Following our return to positive retained earnings, the Board has approved an interim dividend of N5.00 per share, payable from distributable net income to shareholders on the register as of 20 November 2025.

This decision reflects our ongoing commitment to delivering shareholder value and reinforces our commitment to sustainable value creation,” he said.

Equities Market Declines 0.98% As Trading Volume Doubles is first published on The Whistler Newspaper