The Dangote Refinery’s $1.6 billion initial public offering has highlighted the operational and regulatory barriers affecting access to Africa’s capital markets.
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The offer, which opened on September 14, is structured mainly for investors in Nigeria. Nigerian retail investors can apply through digital investment platforms, but Zimbabweans seeking access through Bard Santner Investors (BSI) must use a cross-border process involving regulatory approvals, bank transfers and nominee arrangements.
The IPO comprises 4.1 billion shares priced at ₦525 each, or approximately $0.40 per share. It was scheduled to close on October 13, with a listing expected in November.
A more complicated route for Zimbabwean investors
BSI created a permitted route for Zimbabwean investors to participate. The transaction is treated as an offshore investment in both Nigeria and Zimbabwe, according to Ngoni Chikowore, the firm’s head of asset management, and requires exchange-control approval and supporting documentation.
Under the arrangement, BSI transfers client funds through Ecobank Zimbabwe to Ecobank Nigeria. Ecobank Nominees then submits the IPO application on BSI’s behalf. The minimum investment for the route is $20,000.
Chikowore said the firm was processing applications manually because there was insufficient time to complete online applications.
“So far, because of the time, we couldn’t do online applications. We are doing it more manually,” Chikowore said.
He also said the banking transfers gave BSI evidence or a claim of participation, and that the disruption affecting a Nigerian investment app did not ultimately derail the firm’s process. However, he identified a potential risk before allotment while applications and funds were still moving through the system.
Demand tests Nigerian investment platforms
The IPO also placed pressure on digital investment services used by Nigerian retail investors. Bamboo and Cowrywise experienced service difficulties after demand surged when the offer opened.
Bamboo said it added more than 236,000 accounts in the week before the IPO. Of those, 152,000 were funded and trading. Richmond Bassey said Bamboo’s traffic rose to more than 10 times normal levels during the first 30 minutes of the offer.
According to Bassey, the platform had expected traffic to reach four to five times normal levels and had prepared capacity for as much as 10 times normal traffic. He also said Bamboo depended on third-party providers for one-time passwords, account creation, password resets, deposits and know-your-customer checks.
Cowrywise’s service was slow for about an hour before being restored. The reported disruption reflected capacity limits and dependence on external service providers, rather than a reported cyberattack or security breach.
Broader market-access challenge
The contrasting experiences of Nigerian and Zimbabwean investors show how access to the same offering can vary across borders. Domestic investors could use digital platforms, while BSI’s clients had to navigate approvals, banking channels and a largely manual process.
BSI hopes to automate its cross-border investment process over time. The route nevertheless demonstrates the role still played by banks, regulators and nominee structures in connecting investors to opportunities outside their home markets.
The African Exchanges Linkage Project and the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System are among initiatives intended to improve regional market connectivity and payment systems. Yet the IPO’s early difficulties show that smoother access also depends on the capacity of digital platforms and the reliability of the third-party services supporting them.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s Africa Capital Markets Report 2025 counted 1,141 listed companies across African exchanges, compared with roughly 44,000 globally. African companies accounted for about 1% of global equity capital raised since 2000, while South Africa, Morocco and Egypt represented 80% of the continent’s market capitalisation.
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