Bamboo’s ₦99bn Dangote Refinery IPO subscriptions put fintech ahead of major banks

Nigerian investment fintech Bamboo facilitated approximately ₦99 billion in subscriptions during the Dangote Refinery IPO, slightly ahead of Zenith Bank and the other identified online distribution platforms.

The investment platform also recorded over 600,000 transactions, the most of any of the platforms identified in the figures obtained from sources familiar with the transactions.

Zenith Bank recorded approximately ₦98 billion in subscriptions, followed by FirstBank with ₦60 billion and Chapel Hill with ₦57 billion. The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) recorded ₦36.4 billion.

Bamboo’s performance puts a fintech platform ahead of some of Nigeria’s biggest financial institutions in attracting subscriptions to one of the country’s most closely watched investment offerings.

The figures also highlight the growing role of digital investment platforms in connecting retail investors to opportunities in Nigeria’s capital market.

Bamboo leads online IPO transactions

According to reports, the Dangote Refinery IPO generated more than ₦860 billion in online retail subscriptions from approximately 1.55 million unique subscribers.

About 2.2 million online subscription transactions were recorded during the offer, with Bamboo accounting for more than 600,000 of them.

It is important to distinguish between transactions and subscribers. The 600,000 figure represents transactions processed through Bamboo, not necessarily 600,000 different investors, as one investor may submit more than one subscription.

The figures also show that Bamboo’s subscription value was slightly higher than Zenith Bank’s, despite the bank’s established position in Nigeria’s financial services industry.

The NGX, meanwhile, recorded approximately 60,000 transactions valued at ₦36.4 billion.

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These figures provide a glimpse into how investors used different digital channels to participate in the offer. However, they cover identified online distribution platforms and should not be treated as a complete ranking of every bank, fintech or offline subscription channel.

A growing role for fintech in investing

Bamboo helps Nigerians invest in both local and international opportunities, such as U.S. stocks. By joining the Dangote Refinery IPO, it became one of the channels, along with banks, investment firms, and the NGX, through which investors could apply for shares.

This is important because, in the past, traditional financial institutions were the main way people accessed investment products and connected to the capital market.

But digital platforms are increasingly competing for that role by making investment products accessible through mobile applications.

The Dangote Refinery offer provided a major test of that distribution capacity. Earlier in September, the refinery approved 32 subscription channels, including 19 commercial banks, 10 fintech and investment platforms, two mobile money operators and NGX Invest.

The offer closed on October 27, with Dangote Refinery announcing that it was fully subscribed. The company offered 4.1 billion ordinary shares at ₦525 each, targeting approximately ₦2.15 trillion.

While the reported figures show Bamboo’s strong performance among online channels, they do not establish that fintech platforms have displaced banks as the dominant route to investing. They do, however, show that a digital investment platform can compete with major financial institutions when millions of Nigerians are given an opportunity to participate in a large public offer.

The eventual collation of offline subscriptions will provide a fuller picture of retail participation in the IPO.

Also read: Billionaire Femi Otedola warns of fraudulent Bamboo investment scheme