FG’s Treasury Bills Auction Oversubscribed by 300% at ₦4.59tn

Nigeria’s Treasury Bills (T-bills) auction recorded a sharp surge in investor demand as total subscriptions climbed to ₦4.59 trillion, representing about 300 per cent oversubscription over the ₦1.15 trillion offered.

The auction, conducted by the Debt Management Office (DMO) in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), attracted strong interest from both institutional and retail investors, reflecting continued appetite for government securities amid prevailing economic conditions. Despite the overwhelming bids, the DMO allotted a total of ₦952.60 billion, adopting a restrained borrowing strategy to manage public debt and limit borrowing costs. Most of the demand was concentrated on the 364-day Treasury bill, which attracted subscriptions of about ₦4.40 trillion against an offer of ₦800 billion. The one-year bill recorded an allotment of ₦808.78 billion, with the stop rate declining to 16.99 per cent from 18.36 per cent at the previous auction. The 182-day Treasury bill received subscriptions of ₦123.41 billion compared with a ₦200 billion offer, with ₦80.61 billion allotted at a stop rate of 16.65 per cent, which remained unchanged. Similarly, the 91-day bill attracted ₦66.05 billion in bids, with ₦63.21 billion allotted at a stop rate of 15.84 per cent. Market analysts attributed the strong oversubscription to excess liquidity in the financial system and investors’ preference for relatively high-yield, low-risk government instruments. They noted that uncertainty in other asset classes has continued to push funds toward fixed-income securities. The strong outcome of the auction is expected to give the federal government some leverage in moderating borrowing costs, while reinforcing confidence in Nigeria’s fixed-income market. Analysts anticipate that sustained investor interest could lead to further pressure on stop rates in subsequent auctions, particularly for longer-dated Treasury bills.