For some Nigerians, investing means putting ₦20,000 into a money market fund every month. For others, it means buying a small piece of land with their siblings, holding a few Nigerian stocks, or investing their first $100 in the US market.
There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to investments. How much you invest often depends on what you earn, what you’re comfortable risking, how long you’ve been investing and, sometimes, whether you actually understand what you’re buying.
We asked 10 Nigerians to break down their investment portfolios: how much they earn, how long they’ve been investing, what they own and, most importantly, how much money they’ve actually put into each investment.
Here’s what they told us.
I’m not investing huge amounts yet. I’m just trying to make sure I don’t spend everything I earn. – Blessing*, F, 24
I work in customer service and earn ₦220,000 a month. I’ve only been investing for about seven months, so I’m still very much a beginner.
Right now, I have about ₦180,000 invested, and all of it is in a money market fund. I started with ₦20,000 because I realised that whenever money stayed in my regular account, I would eventually find something to spend it on. I started putting away small amounts whenever I got paid. Some months it was ₦20,000, other months it was ₦30,000 or ₦40,000, depending on what was left after my expenses.
I know people my age who are already buying stocks and investing in dollars, but I’m not there yet. I’m still learning how different investments work, and I’d rather understand something before putting my money into it.
My immediate goal is to get to ₦300,000. After that, I want to try buying my first stock. I don’t think my portfolio looks impressive right now, but at least I’ve started.
I’m trying very hard not to let my lifestyle catch up with my income. – Tamilore*, F, 26
I’m a product designer, and I currently earn about ₦1.5 million a month. I’ve been investing for almost four years, and I started long before I began earning this much. As a university student, I earned between ₦200,000 and ₦300,000 in some months freelancing and juggling multiple gigs. My first investment was only ₦20,000 in Dangote Cement. I didn’t know much about investing. I just knew I didn’t want every extra naira I made to be spent as it came in. I now have about ₦5.4 million in naira investments and around $1,800 in US investments.
The largest part of my portfolio is a money market fund, with about ₦2 million. Then I have ₦1.4 million in Nigerian stocks, mainly GTCO, MTN and Dangote Cement. I also have about ₦1.2 million in Treasury bills and another ₦800,000 that I’ve put towards land with two friends. My foreign portfolio is mostly Apple stocks.
I’m still young, so I’m not trying to have the most complicated portfolio. I just want to keep increasing my investments while I have fewer responsibilities.
I bought MTN shares because it was the only stock I felt I understood. – Danny*, M, 26
I’m a junior copywriter, and I earn about ₦280,000 a month. I’ve been investing for a little over a year. I currently have around ₦450,000 invested — ₦300,000 in a money market fund and ₦150,000 in MTN Nigeria shares.
I chose MTN because I’m a beginner to stock investing. I figured it was better to invest in a company I use every day and understand the business, rather than a random one I had never heard of. I bought the shares and then basically left them alone.
I haven’t bought another stock since. I keep telling myself I’ll research more companies, but I’m still learning. I mostly invest in the money market fund because I’m more comfortable with it.
I also don’t have a huge amount of disposable income. After transport, food, bills and everything else, there isn’t always much left. So for me, investing is more about building the habit than trying to build a huge portfolio immediately.
I don’t own stocks yet. I’m trying to understand what I’m doing before I start. – Mariam*, F, 24
I’m an accountant and earn about ₦310,000 a month. I’ve been investing for roughly a year and a half. I have about ₦580,000 invested at the moment — ₦380,000 in a money market fund and ₦200,000 in treasury bills.
I started because I was getting tired of saving money only to watch it slowly disappear whenever I had an unexpected expense. Someone at work introduced me to money market funds, and that was the first investment I felt comfortable trying.
The treasury bills came later. I liked the idea of putting some money somewhere for a specific period and knowing roughly what I was getting back.
I’ve thought about stocks, especially because everyone seems to be talking about them now, but I don’t want to buy something just because my friends are buying it. I’m still trying to understand how the market works.
My biggest investment lesson is that earning more doesn’t automatically make you better with money. – Habeeb*, M, 33
I work in tech and earn ₦1.2 million a month. I’ve been investing for five years. I have about ₦8 million in naira investments (mutual funds, stocks, property and treasury bills) and $1,500 in US investments.
My Nigerian stocks include GTCO, Access Holdings and Dangote Cement. My US investments are mostly in an S&P 500 ETF, with smaller positions in Nestlé. When I first started investing, my income was much lower, so my first investments were pretty small. The biggest difference now is that I have more money available to invest, but I also have more responsibilities. I support family members, pay more bills and generally have a more expensive life.
So, I don’t invest across my portfolio every month. Sometimes, my money goes into one instrument. Other times, I don’t invest at all. I already built the foundation, so it’s easier.
My portfolio has grown with my income. – Ifeanyi*, M, 31
I currently earn ₦650,000 a month as a banker, and I’ve been investing for five years. My portfolio includes Nigerian stocks and treasury bills and is worth around ₦3.2 million. My Nigerian stocks are mainly GTCO, Zenith, Seplat and Dangote Cement. I didn’t buy them all at once. I started with one company, then gradually added another whenever I had spare money.
When I first started investing, I was earning much less than I am now. There were months when I could only put away ₦20,000 or ₦30,000. As my salary increased, the amount I could invest increased too.
I prefer Nigerian stocks because they’re easier for me to understand. I know the companies, I use their services, and I can follow what’s happening with them.
I’ve considered US stocks, but I don’t want to buy something just because it’s popular. Maybe I’ll get there eventually. My main goal now is to keep building the portfolio without neglecting my emergency savings.
My income is inconsistent, so I don’t invest every month. I invest when I have a good month. – Ray*, M, 26
I’m a freelance graphic designer, and my income averages around ₦500,000 a month. It can be much higher or lower depending on my clients. I’ve been investing for about two and a half years and currently have ₦2 million in my portfolio.
₦1.4 million is in a money market fund, and the remaining ₦600,000 is in Nigerian stocks, mostly Seplat and GTCO. The money market fund is the easiest part for me because I can put money there whenever I have a good month. When I get a big freelance payment, I’ll usually take a portion before I start spending anything.
There have also been months when I didn’t invest anything at all. I have rent, subscriptions, family expenses and random things that come up. I used to feel guilty about that, but I’ve realised investing has to fit into my actual life.
My next goal is to get the portfolio to ₦3 million. After that, I’ll probably start looking more seriously into dollar investments.
I’m more interested in owning something tangible, so I prefer to invest in land. – Obinna*, M, 34
I’m a secondary school teacher and earn around ₦380,000 a month. I’ve been investing for about three years.
I have roughly ₦1.2 million invested, and most of that (₦800,000) is money I’ve set aside towards a piece of land I hope to buy next year. The remaining ₦400,000 is split between a money market fund and a small holding in GTCO and Cadbury.
I bought GTCO shares to try stocks, but I’m not someone who checks my portfolio every day. I bought them and left them there. Honestly, if you looked at my portfolio, you might not even call it diversified. But I’m okay with that. I have a specific goal, and right now that goal is property. After I get that, I can start considering other options.
I’m learning to start small. – Matilda*, F, 29
I work in marketing and earn ₦1.2 million a month. I’ve been investing for around three years. I have about ₦3.5 million in naira investments (mostly stocks) and around $2000 in US investments.
The US investments are a recent development. I invested in an S&P 500 ETF and Sony Group to gain exposure to investments outside Nigeria and because I liked the idea of having part of my portfolio in dollars.
I know $2000 isn’t a large amount, though. I started small because that was what I could afford. One thing investing has taught me is that you can earn a decent salary and still not have unlimited money. There are always things competing for your income.
It took me six years to build my current portfolio. – Yemi*, M, 34
I’m a software engineer and earn $12,650 (minus tax) a month. I’ve been investing for about six years. I currently have around ₦15 million in naira investments and about $6500 in US investments.
Property is the biggest part of my portfolio. I’ve put around ₦15 million towards landed property over the years. I also have money in treasury bills and Nigerian stocks. I just buy those and leave them alone.
It’s easy to assume I invest huge amounts every month, but the truth is that it took me years of investing small amounts to get here. You just need to start and be intentional about coming back to it.
There’s no single way to start investing. Whether you’re starting small or ready to diversify, Bamboo makes it easy to invest in stocks from your phone. You can also use Bamboo to subscribe to the Dangote Refinery IPO, which is currently open till October 13.
*Names have been changed for anonymity.
