Nigeria has long been celebrated for a culture of thrift, delayed gratification and community-based savings.
Generations relied on various thrift frameworks like ajo (in the southwest); esusu in the southeast and cooperative societies generally to pool resources, provide financial security, and foster long-term planning.
These systems not only encouraged discipline but also strengthened social cohesion, offering members both a safety net and an avenue for capital accumulation.
However, in recent decades, that culture has come under strain. Rising inflation, stagnant wages and the devaluation of the naira have steadily eroded the financial stability that Nigerians once enjoyed.
Even with economic reforms aimed at deepening financial inclusion and modernizing the capital market, a troubling paradox has emerged: Nigerians demonstrate a willingness to take financial risks, but very few participate in formal savings or investment channels, be it from the capital market or savings promo initiated by banks.
The contradiction was highlighted in a recent revelation by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
According to the Commission, over 60 million Nigerians engage in gambling activities every day, collectively spending an estimated $5.5 million daily, while fewer than three million citizens actively invest.
The SEC’s revelation about the size of Nigeria’s gambling market startled many, but the signs have long been visible. Betting shops and online platforms have mushroomed across cities and villages alike.
According to industry estimates, the Nigerian betting market is worth more than N1 trillion annually, with most users between the ages of 18 and 40.
Platforms like Bet9ja, SportyBet, and BetKing dominate the space, offering instant excitement and, occasionally, life-changing wins. But behind the neon-lit promise of fortune lies a social and economic cost, rising addiction, household financial strain, and a diversion of capital from productive uses.
Indeed, smartphones and mobile money have created an ecosystem where betting is just a few taps away, further diverting disposable income from traditional savings and investment products.
The figures point to a broader social and economic challenge. With a population of over 200 million plus, Nigeria has roughly 120 million adults. Of this adult population, this means that only around 2.5 per cent to 3 per cent invest in the capital market and savings promo by banks while one-fifth engage in daily gambling.
The striking disparity reflects both economic pressures and cultural shifts. For many Nigerians, gambling offers immediate gratification and the tantalising prospect of quick financial gains, something that is harder to achieve through traditional savings or stock market investment, especially when banks offer low returns and inflation continually erodes the real value of money.
Founder, Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), Muda Yusuf, explained that people are struggling to survive daily.
“For many, saving or investing is a luxury. The hope of hitting a jackpot seems more realistic than earning meaningful interest from a bank account or the stock market”, Yusuf said.
Yusuf’s clarification is correct according to experts. Macroeconomic pressures have gradually undermined these structures. Inflation, which reached 33.7 per cent in September 2024, and rising food prices exceeding 40 per cent, weakening households’ ability to save.
However, that has changed now with inflation currently sitting at 18 per cent. Low bank interest rates mean that even when money is set aside, it often loses real value over time.
The consequences of this trend are evident in Nigeria’s capital market. According to the SEC, the market capitalisation-to-GDP ratio stands at about 30 per cent, far below South Africa (320 per cent), Malaysia (123 per cent), and India (92 per cent).
“The low participation rate in our capital market is a major impediment to economic growth and capital formation,” Agama said during a recent conference of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers.
A Lagos based civil servant, Chidi Nwafor, said, “Why should I save when my salary cannot even last the month? If I win on a betting app, at least I can breathe for a week, reflecting a sentiment shared by millions of urban and rural Nigerians alike.
Nwafor also said the decline of the traditional savings culture, combined with low trust in financial institutions, has created a vacuum that gambling and speculative ventures now occupy.
“Without strong incentives or accessible avenues for investment, Nigerians are turning to riskier, short-term alternatives”, he said.
While traditional market participation remains low, Nigeria’s cryptocurrency market has flourished. Between July 2023 and June 2024, over $50 billion worth of crypto transactions flowed through the country, demonstrating Nigerians’ appetite for high-risk financial ventures.
Cryptocurrency offers both opportunities and challenges. For many young Nigerians, it provides a relatively accessible entry point to investment, especially given the limitations of the formal banking system. Yet, like gambling, it carries high risks and is largely speculative. Without proper regulation, investor education, and transparency, crypto trading can further undermine savings discipline and expose participants to potential losses.
Moreso, trust has been a key barrier to a robust savings culture. Many Nigerians remain wary of banks due to past failures, Ponzi schemes, and inconsistent policies. Approximately 38 million adults are still financially excluded, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria.
In response to these challenges, fintech platforms like PiggyVest, Cowrywise, and Kuda Bank are attempting to bridge the gap by offering automated savings and micro-investment tools. These platforms aim to make saving and investing more accessible and appealing to the average Nigerian.
However, their reach remains limited. Many Nigerians continue to rely on informal mechanisms or digital speculation for short-term gains, highlighting the need for broader financial literacy and trust-building initiatives
The erosion of savings and investment behaviour has serious macroeconomic consequences. Low levels of formal savings limit capital formation, slowing business growth, infrastructure development, and overall economic expansion.
Nigeria’s $150 billion annual infrastructure deficit starkly illustrates this gap, with only N1.5 trillion raised through public-private partnership (PPP) bonds, according to SEC.
“Nigeria’s $150 billion annual infrastructure deficit far exceeds the market’s contribution, with only N1.5 trillion approved in PPP bonds. This shows a misalignment between financial innovation and national priorities”, Agama lamented.
Without a shift toward productive investment, the economy risks being driven by short-term speculation rather than long-term wealth creation. Household financial resilience is weakened, and dependence on credit or informal support systems increases.
Experts’ views
To reverse these trends, economic analysts who spoke to Daily Sun, have called for expansion of financial literacy programs in schools and communities. They also added that such measures aim to redirect Nigerians’ appetite for risk toward productive channels that create long-term wealth rather than ephemeral gains.
The Managing Director, Apt Securities, Kurfi Garba, noted that although the figure was displeasing, it was not also surprising owing to the state of the nation.
“In a nation grappling with inflation, exchange rate volatility, unemployment, the figure is not surprising. I think the FG has to completely review school curriculum and embed savings and investment as a subject or even a course in tertiary institutions. Then we can now look at providing accessible investment products that also appeal to the informal sector because whether you like it or not, they are Nigerians. We have to spread the net wide so that savings or investments would not continue to dwindle”, Garba suggested.
A Lagos based bank account manager who works with one of the tier-1 banks, said that banks in Nigeria have the tools and technology to reignite a savings and investment culture, but success requires combining accessibility, incentives, trust-building, and education.
According to her, the onus is on the FG, CBN and banks to implement saving easy, rewarding, and engaging initiatives.
“By addressing the behavioral and structural barriers, banks can channel Nigerians’ natural risk appetite away from gambling and speculative ventures toward productive investment that strengthens both households and the economy”, She said.
Conclusion
Nigeria’s risk-taking energy, if channeled properly, could drive innovation, investment, and economic growth. Yet, current trends reveal a society increasingly drawn to gambling and speculative ventures, while participation in long-term savings and investments remains dismally low.
The challenge for policymakers, regulators, and financial institutions is clear: rebuild trust, expand access, and make saving and investing both appealing and achievable. Without this, Africa’s biggest populated country risks becoming a nation that wagers its future rather than invests in it.
