Data released by the National Pension Commission (PenCom) has revealed a slight decline in Nigeria’s pension fund assets, totaling N19.669 trillion as of March 31, 2024. This represents a marginal decrease of approximately 0.45% compared to the N19.759 trillion reported in February 2024.
The commission’s monthly report for March 2024, as disclosed by PenCom and reviewed by Nairmetrics, outlined key details regarding the performance of pension fund assets during the period.
Portfolio Allocation:
– The report indicates that total pension fund net asset value decreased to N19.669 trillion in March, compared to N19.759 trillion reported in the previous month.
– FGN securities continued to dominate portfolio allocation, accounting for about N12.200 trillion or 62.03% of the total net asset value.
– Pension funds also allocated N2.058 trillion to corporate debt securities and N1.779 trillion to money market instruments.
– Investments in ordinary shares of local companies saw an increase of 8.72% to N2.082 trillion from N1.915 trillion in February.
Fund Allocation:
– Fund II, the default RSA Fund under the Multi-Fund Structure, retained the largest share of the Active RSA Funds allocation, amounting to N8.331 trillion or 42.35% of the total fund NAV.
– Fund III also experienced growth, rising by 1.19% from N5.112 trillion to N5.173 trillion, maintaining its position as the second-largest fund allocation.
– RSA membership for March 2024 increased by 0.22% to 10,280,956 from 10,258,611 members in February 2024.
Observations:
– Pension funds’ net asset values have witnessed a significant rise from N14.9 trillion in December 2022 to N19.7 trillion in March 2024, marking a substantial N4.8 trillion or 32.21% increase.
– This surge is attributed to a combination of increased pension fund contributions and a rise in portfolio values, notably in FGN securities, which saw its net asset values grow from N9.64 trillion in 2022 to N11.89 trillion as of March 2024.
The report underscores the resilience and growth potential of Nigeria’s pension fund industry, despite occasional fluctuations, and highlights the importance of effective management and investment strategies to sustain long-term fund growth and stability.
