UK’s MOBILIST facilitates secondary sale of listed shares in InfraCredit, deepens market confidence

*The United Kingdom’s MOBILIST programme successfully trades its investment in Nigerian credit guarantee company InfraCredit to five Nigerian pension funds as part of measures to mobilise more local institutional investment for the country’s infrastructure development for growth

Gbenga Kayode | ConsumerConnect

In a move to mobilise more local institutional investment for infrastructure development critical to the country’s growth, the United Kingdom (UK) MOBILIST programme has successfully traded its investment in Nigerian credit guarantee company InfraCredit to five Nigerian pension funds.

MOBILIST’s exit represents the biggest trade in InfraCredit’s shares since its listing by introduction on Nigeria’s NASD OTC Exchange Plc (NASD) April 2025.

The transaction enabled five domestic institutional investors – pension funds and insurers – to take up shareholding in InfraCredit.

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UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) in Nigeria, in a statement Monday, November 3, 2025, however, disclosed that four of the funds did not participate in the initial listing.

InfraCredit is Nigeria’s first and only domestic creditor guarantor, issuing Naira-denominated guarantees that help to mitigate risk for investors and improve the creditworthiness of Nigerian infrastructure debt instruments.

These guarantees enable Nigerian institutional investors to invest in instruments used to finance infrastructure projects.

The UK’s FCDO, through MOBILIST, has invested NGN9.5 billion ($6 million) in InfraCredit’s listing, which saw the company raise a total of ₦27 billion (US$17.7 million) after attracting investment from two local pension funds, the statement noted.

The listing broadened InfraCredit’s domestic institutional shareholder base and gave the company access to new sources of capital, expanding its capacity to provide guarantees for new infrastructure projects.

The secondary sale of MOBILIST’s shares extends this impact, offering liquidity to untapped buyers, who are natural long-term private sector equity holders but who did not participate at the initial point of listing.

According to FCDO, after the secondary sale, Nigerian pension funds will collectively own more than 27 percent of InfraCredit’s ordinary equity,

This is expected to reinforce domestic institutional ownership and governance of a strategically important financial institution, alongside the public sector capital (including the UK) which remains invested in the company.

Speaking on the transaction, Mr. Jonny Baxter, British Deputy High Commissioner to Nigeria (Lagos), said: “The UK consistently prioritises transformational investments that unlock commercial markets.

“InfraCredit is one such example, an indigenous guarantee platform which is now attracting Nigerian institutional investors.”

Baxter explained: “To date, InfraCredit has facilitated over ₦300 billion in financing, valued at more than $500 million equivalent indexed at issuance, in support of infrastructure development across Nigeria.

“We’re excited to see this momentum continue to grow, driven increasingly by domestic capital and delivering strong returns to Nigerian investors.

“A win-win where more infrastructure is built to support Nigerian businesses, and more value returned to Nigerian stakeholders.”

Azubike: Transaction a milestone for InfraCredit, Nigerian financial markets

In his remarks also, Mr. Chinua Azubike, CEO of InfraCredit, said: “This secondary transaction is a proud milestone for InfraCredit and for Nigeria’s financial markets.

“It reinforces our long-term ownership vision that catalytic foreign investment can pave the way for sustained domestic institutional participation at scale.

“We are delighted to welcome four new Nigerian pension funds to our ownership base, a reflection of deepened market confidence and the growing role of local investors in financing Nigeria’s sustainable future.”

Mr. Ross Ferguson, MOBILIST Programme Lead within FCDO, said: “MOBILIST’s investment in InfraCredit proved the potential of using public markets to mobilise private – and importantly – local investment in sectors driving sustainable development and growth.

“The programme’s exit only reinforces this potential and highlights how innovative development finance can generate impact beyond an initial investment by contributing to the creation of deeper, more liquid capital markets while recycling capital for future investments.”

The statement further noted that InfraCredit benefited from technical assistance, and catalytic investments facilitated by MOBILIST, Financial Sector Deepening Africa (FSDA), British International Investments (BII), the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG), and FCDO-Nigeria.

These contributions, FCDO-Nigeria stated, have played a critical role in de-risking local investments and mobilising domestic institutional capital towards green infrastructure projects.

The UK remains committed to partnering with Nigeria to develop its local capital markets, including through MOBILIST’s continued partnership with the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) to enable greater investment towards sustainable development through listed products. According to the statement, the programme remains open to applications for technical assistance and catalytic equity investment toward Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) and the development of new listed products.

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