Treasury Bills Dominate Fixed Income Market as Investors Execute N5.32tn Trades

Nume Ekeghe

Trading activities in Nigeria’s fixed income market remained robust last week ended July 17, 2026, with investors executing transactions worth over N5.32 trillion across Treasury Bills, Open Market Operation (OMO) Bills, Federal Government (FGN) Bonds and Sukuk securities, as demand for high-yield government instruments remained resilient amid elevated interest rates.

Data from the Fixed Income Dashboard showed that a total of 1,884 trades valued at N5.32 trillion were recorded during the review period, with Treasury Bills emerging as the most actively traded instrument by transaction volume, while OMO Bills dominated the market by traded value.

Treasury Bills accounted for 852 trades, representing the highest number of transactions executed during the period, with a combined face value of N1.67 trillion and participation from 26 market players, highlighting sustained investor appetite for short-term government securities.

However, OMO Bills recorded the largest turnover by value, with 499 trades worth approximately N2.85 trillion, involving 18 participants. The sizeable volume underscores the continued attractiveness of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s liquidity management instruments, particularly among institutional investors seeking relatively higher returns.

Activity in the FGN Bond market also remained healthy, with 531 trades valued at N794.58 billion executed by 22 participants, reflecting sustained interest in medium- to long-term government debt despite elevated yields across the sovereign curve. Meanwhile, Sukuk securities recorded limited activity, with only two trades worth N4 million involving a single participant.

Yield movements during the week remained elevated across the fixed income market. OMO Bills closed with yields of approximately 21.15 per cent on the shorter tenor and 20.62 per cent on the longer tenor, maintaining their position as some of the highest-yielding government instruments in the market.

Similarly, yields on FGN Bonds traded within the 17.25 per cent to 19.00 per cent range across various maturities, reflecting the prevailing high-interest-rate environment as monetary authorities continue to maintain a tight policy stance aimed at containing inflation and supporting exchange rate stability.

Across the broader sovereign curve, closing yields generally ranged between 16.06 per cent and 20.90 per cent, indicating that investors continued to demand relatively high returns across both short- and long-dated securities.

The data also suggests that investors continue to position portfolios in favour of fixed income assets as yields remain attractive relative to alternative investment classes, with expectations that monetary policy will remain restrictive in the near term.