Stories by Seun Ibiyemi
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reverted to using its Scripless Securities Settlement System (S4) for the electronic submission of Treasury Bills auction bids.
This decision follows a brief suspension caused by a technical glitch during its initial test run in November.
The apex bank confirmed that the technical issues have been resolved, clearing the way for the platform’s deployment ahead of a N365 billion Treasury Bills auction scheduled for December 17–18, 2025.
The move underscores the CBN’s determination to tighten controls, enhance transparency, and improve price discovery in the primary fixed income market.
According to the auction timetable, bids will be submitted on Wednesday, December 17, with successful bidders expected to settle their obligations on Thursday, December 18.
Market operators view the reinstatement as a signal that the CBN is pressing ahead with its reform agenda despite earlier operational challenges.
Mr. Tajudeen Olayinka, Chief Executive Officer of Wyoming Capital Partners, noted that the return of the S4 platform signals a renewed push for transparency in primary market auctions as the CBN advances its fixed income reforms.
Auction guidelines issued last weekend indicate that the CBN will offer a total of N365 billion across three short-dated tenors: N100 billion in 91-day bills, N100 billion in 182-day bills, and N165 billion in 364-day bills.
The auction will utilize the Dutch auction system, with bids submitted exclusively via 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 N1,000, subject to a minimum subscription of N50.001 million.
This marks the second mandatory activation of S4, following its initial implementation at the November 20, 2025, auction, where the CBN raised over N700 billion. Although the platform was temporarily suspended during which bids were routed through Money Market Dealers (MMDs) sources close to the apex bank clarified that the pause was a transitional measure rather than a policy reversal.
The CBN expects to conclude the reform process before the end of the year, after which S4 will become fully operational for all government securities.
Speaking on the development, Mr. Zeal Akariwe, CEO of Graeme Blaque Advisory, explained that the CBN’s objective is to achieve real-time market visibility rather than control.
“Did CBN take over? No. What the CBN wants is transparency and visibility over the market, not a takeover. That visibility did not exist,” Akariwe said at a recent workshop in Lagos.
He highlighted that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) remains the statutory regulator, describing the CBN’s actions as corrective steps to address structural weaknesses where profit concealment was previously possible.