ISA 2025: A Framework for Broader Participation
The CAMCAN workshop, themed “Regulatory Reforms: ISA 2025 & Nigeria’s Investment Climate,” also spotlighted the sweeping changes introduced by the new Act. Delivering his presentation through a representative, Lawal described ISA 2025 as the legal backbone for expanding investor inclusion.
He noted that ISA 2025 recognizes digital and virtual assets as securities, legitimizes crowdfunding and investment contracts, and provides for new categories of exchanges — including composite and non-composite platforms. It also broadens the pool of eligible issuers, from free-trade-zone enterprises to government agencies, while strengthening the regulatory authority of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
These provisions, Lawal explained, dismantle long-standing structural barriers and open new regulated channels for savings and investment.
Through regulated crowdfunding and expanded issuance options — such as Sukuk and other non-interest instruments now available to states and local governments — ISA 2025 enables household savings to be channeled into long-term infrastructure projects. Such investments, he argued, can finance roads, power plants, ports, and other assets critical to productivity growth, ultimately generating a multiplier effect essential for achieving the $1 trillion economic aspiration.
Advisory firms like PwC have similarly highlighted the Act’s intention to deepen capital markets and broaden investor choices.
Market data supports this potential: despite the shallow investor base, transaction volumes continue to rise. CSCS reported significant increases in securities activity in 2025, suggesting strong latent demand awaiting mobilization.