Demand for Nigerian T-bills soars, yields drop

Kakawa Discount MD, Jaiyeola

Demand for Nigerian short-term debt surged further at an auction on Wednesday, with subscription more than five-fold the amount sold, but the central bank stuck to its initial offer.
Nigeria received 813.19 billion naira ($5.02 billion) in subscriptions for Treasury bills ranging from 3-month to one-year maturities. The central bank had offered 157.17 billion worth of the debt notes, and strong demand from local pension fund and assets managers pushed down yields across the board.
The bank sold 45.17 billion in the 91-day paper at 10.24 percent returns, compared with 11 percent at the last auction on April 23.
It sold 30 billion naira in the 182-day bills at 10.65 percent against 11.77 percent at the previous auction, while a total of 82 billion was sold in the one-year treasury bill at the rate of 11.28 percent compared with 12.24 percent previously.
Traders said demand for the debt notes was heavy due to a large amount of liquidity in the banking system.