FirstHoldCo, Aradel, Zenith among six Nigerian companies listed in FTSE Frontier 50 Index

Six Nigerian companies have been included in the FTSE Frontier 50 Index, following the latest review by global index provider, FTSE Russell.

The companies are First HoldCo, Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO), Zenith Bank, MTN Nigeria Communications, Dangote Cement, and Aradel Holding.

According to FTSE’s September 2026 semi-annual review, the six Nigerian companies are among 13 new constituents added to the 50-stock frontier-market index.

FTSE Russell said the FTSE Frontier 50 Index is designed to represent the performance of 50 leading companies across frontier markets.

The changes are scheduled to take effect after the close of trading on September 18, with the revised index effective from September 21, FTSE Russell said.

The six companies represent 46.1 percent of the new inclusions.

FTSE Russell had initially announced Nigeria’s reclassification in April but placed the decision under additional assessment following the country’s move from a T+2 to T+1 settlement cycle.

The index provider said it engaged with Nigerian market authorities and investors during the assessment to evaluate the impact of the shorter settlement period on international investors.

FTSE Russell subsequently said it had observed no material settlement, operational or funding issues since the implementation of T+1, allowing the reclassification to proceed.

The country’s return to Frontier Market status restoresNigerian stocks to FTSE Russell’s frontier-market benchmarks after the earlier “Unclassified” designation.

On September 3, the index provider listed 10 Nigerian companies from different sectors for inclusion in the FTSE Russell frontier index series.

The 10 stocks were classified as “newly eligible” large-cap constituents of the frontier index series.(TheCable)