NSIA Profit Crashes 91% to $107m as FX Gains Fade

The Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) has reported a sharp 91 per cent decline in profit for the 2025 financial year, as foreign exchange-driven windfalls that buoyed previous earnings reversed amid relative currency stability.

Details from the authority’s 2025 Special Purpose US Dollar Consolidated and Separate Financial Statements showed that profit fell steeply to $107.03 million from $1.24 billion recorded in 2024.

The NSIA, established to manage surplus revenues from crude oil sales on behalf of the federal government, saw its performance significantly impacted by the disappearance of foreign exchange gains that had inflated earnings in prior years.

A breakdown of the results showed that total operating income dropped to $137.97 million from $1.3 billion in 2024, while total operating profit declined to $127.80 million from $1.2 billion. Core operating income, however, rose modestly to $349.07 million from $328.54 million, reflecting some resilience in underlying operations.

Interest income improved to $197.34 million from $177.88 million, while investment income weakened to $18.07 million from $23.71 million. Total assets grew to $3.42 billion from $2.88 billion, with government contributions rising to $2.06 billion from $1.82 billion. Total equity also strengthened to $3.4 billion from $2.84 billion.

Analysts say the dramatic earnings contraction was largely driven by the reversal of foreign exchange gains recorded in 2024, when naira devaluation significantly boosted the dollar value of the Authority’s naira-denominated assets.

In 2024, NSIA recorded a foreign exchange gain of $566.9 million. That trend reversed in 2025, with the Authority posting foreign exchange losses of $214.2 million following relative currency stabilisation.

Similarly, gains from FX-linked collateralised securities dropped sharply, swinging by about $405 million. These instruments, which delivered $407.9 million in 2024, generated only $3.1 million in 2025.

Further pressure came from equity investments, which shifted from a $28.4 million profit in 2024 to a $7.2 million loss in 2025, representing a $35.5 million deterioration.

Agriculture-related revenue also disappeared entirely. The Authority had recorded $76.42 million from agriculture infrastructure operations in 2024 but reported no such income in 2025.

Explaining this development, according to Nairametrics, the NSIA said at its earnings presentation and media parley on April 2, 2026, that the decline followed its planned exit from the Presidential Fertilizer Initiative (PFI).

“As part of its planned exit from the Presidential Fertilizer Initiative and in line with the market-driven Phase II model, NSIA successfully completed the phased transfer of operatorship to the Ministry of Finance Incorporated between 2024 and 2025,” the Authority stated, noting that the transition, while impacting revenue, aligns with its long-term sustainability objectives.

A review of recent performance trends indicates that NSIA’s earnings volatility has been closely tied to macroeconomic shifts, particularly exchange rate movements.

In 2022, the Authority posted relatively stable results, with total operating income of N101.1 billion and profit of N102.4 billion, driven largely by interest income and modest foreign exchange gains.

However, in 2023, the unification and flotation of the naira triggered a surge in earnings, with foreign exchange gains rising to N537.3 billion and fair value gains to N544.2 billion. This pushed total operating income to N1.18 trillion and profit to N1.185 trillion.

The momentum carried into 2024, supported by sustained post-devaluation rates, but early signs of global economic headwinds began to emerge.

By 2025, with the naira stabilising and foreign exchange gains unwinding, the Authority’s earnings profile adjusted sharply downward.

Despite the profit contraction, the NSIA’s balance sheet remained strong, with growth in total assets, equity, and core operating income indicating underlying stability.

Analysts note that the 2025 performance reflects a normalisation of earnings rather than a deterioration of core operations, as the authority transitions away from one-off currency-driven gains toward more sustainable income streams.