Nigeria At Economic Inflection Point As Reforms Gather Pace – Ajayi

The Chief Executive of Rand Merchant Bank (RMB), Bayo Ajayi, has said the ongoing reforms of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu present an opportunity to speed up growth and restore investor confidence in the Nigerian economy.

Ajayi, while speaking at the RMB Nigeria Economic Forum 2026, noted that Nigeria stands at a defining inflection point in its economic journey, with ongoing reforms and institutional strengthening presenting a unique opportunity to accelerate growth, deepen financial markets, and rebuild investor confidence.

He stressed that sustained policy reforms, institutional strengthening, and scalable sustainable finance solutions are critical to unlocking Nigeria’s long-term economic potential.

With the theme “Charting Nigeria’s Future: Reforms, Resilience and Growth,” the forum focused on building stability and financing the future, exploring global and domestic economic dynamics, and on how sustainable finance can support Nigeria’s energy transition and industrial development.

In his keynote address, the Managing Director, Financial Derivatives Company Limited, Bismarck Rewane, underscored the importance of Nigeria’s reform agenda in building economic resilience amid global uncertainty.

He highlighted fiscal discipline, monetary stability, exchange rate realignment, and structural transformation as critical pillars for sustainable growth, emphasising that strong institutions, predictable policy frameworks, and accelerated industrialisation remain essential to attracting investment and sustaining longterm growth.

Speaking on Sustainability and Transition Finance, Transactor, Sustainable Finance (Climate and Transition) at RMB, Tshepo Ntsane, stressed that Africa’s pathway to a just and inclusive energy transition must carefully balance energy access, security, and environmental sustainability.

He noted that transition finance is particularly critical for countries such as Nigeria, where economic diversification and industrial competitiveness depend on pragmatic, well structured sustainability strategies.

Speaking during the panel, RMB Debt Capital Markets, Laju Atake noted that access to sustainable finance is anchored on the development of clear corporate sustainability strategies and credible sustainable finance frameworks.

He noted that institutions such as RMB play a critical role in structuring these frameworks, identifying eligible projects, and connecting issuers to both global and domestic pools of sustainable capital.

Across the sessions, participants agreed that Nigeria’s economic future will be shaped by the country’s ability to sustain reform momentum, strengthen institutions, and adapt swiftly to evolving global economic and environmental dynamics.