The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reverted to the use of its Scripless Securities Settlement System (S4) for the electronic submission of Treasury Bills auction bids, following a brief suspension after its initial test run in November.
Fintech Insights understands that the system was paused after experiencing a technical glitch, which has now been fully resolved.
The move comes ahead of a ₦365 billion Treasury Bills auction scheduled for December 17–18, 2025, underscoring the apex bank’s determination to tighten controls, improve transparency, and enhance price discovery in Nigeria’s primary fixed income market.
According to the auction timetable, bids will be submitted on Wednesday, December 17, while successful bidders will be required to settle by Thursday, December 18.
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Market participants view the decision as a clear signal that the CBN is pushing ahead with market reforms despite earlier operational challenges. Mr. Tajudeen Olayinka, Chief Executive Officer of Wyoming Capital Partners, said the return to S4 reflects a renewed commitment by the apex bank to transparency in primary market auctions as it deepens fixed income reforms.
Auction Details: ₦365bn Across Three Tenors
Guidelines released by the CBN show that the ₦365 billion offer will be split across three short-term maturities:
91-day Treasury Bills: ₦100 billion
182-day Treasury Bills: ₦100 billion
364-day Treasury Bills: ₦165 billion
The auction will be conducted using the Dutch auction system, with bids submitted exclusively through the S4 web interface between 8:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, December 17, 2025.
Each bid must be in multiples of ₦1,000, with a minimum subscription of ₦50.001 million. Successful bidders are expected to complete settlement by 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, December 18.
Second Activation After November Test Run
The December auction marks the second activation of mandatory S4 usage, following its first deployment during the November 20, 2025 Treasury Bills auction, when the CBN raised more than ₦700 billion.
Although the platform was temporarily suspended in subsequent issuances during which bids were routed through Money Market Dealers (MMDs) sources close to the apex bank said the pause was part of a phased transition rather than a reversal of policy.
The CBN is expected to complete the reform process before the end of the year, after which S4 will become fully operational for all government securities transactions.
CBN Targets Visibility, Not Market Control
Speaking recently at a Premium Times Academy workshop in Lagos, Mr. Zeal Akariwe, Chief Executive Officer of Graeme Blaque Advisory, explained that the CBN’s objective is to achieve real-time market visibility, not to take over the fixed income market.
“Did the CBN take over? No. What the CBN wants is transparency and visibility over the market, not control. That visibility did not exist before,” Akariwe said.
He stressed that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) remains the statutory regulator, while the CBN’s interventions are aimed at correcting long-standing structural weaknesses in the market.
Why Transparency Matters
Akariwe noted that gaps in the previous system allowed some market participants to conceal profits from regulators. He cited instances where banks and pension funds routed bond transactions through intermediaries to obscure gains.
In one example, a pension fund holding a 10 per cent coupon bond bought at ₦100 could sell through a broker at ₦120, allowing the ₦20 profit to be discreetly shared without regulatory oversight. “The CBN says we can’t have a system where we cannot see what is going on,” he explained.
While concerns had been raised over inconsistent use of issuance platforms, Akariwe described this as part of a transitional phase.
Beyond Treasury Bills auctions, the S4 rollout aligns with Governor Olayemi Cardoso’s broader reform agenda, which spans financial markets, banking supervision, compliance, and foreign exchange reforms. The goal, according to analysts, is to embed transparency-driven systems that strengthen market integrity beyond the current administration.
With the return of S4 for the December auction, the CBN appears set to make electronic bidding the standard in Nigeria’s government securities market.
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