A financial analyst, Kalu Aja, has stated that about 95 per cent of Nigerians do not have up to ₦500,000 in their bank accounts.

Aja made the remark in a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday, reacting to claims by President Bola Tinubu’s Special Assistant on Social Media, Dada Olusegun, that Nigerian Treasury Bills recently attracted a total subscription of ₦4.59 trillion.

Olusegun noted that the figure represented an oversubscription of nearly four times the ₦1.15 trillion initially offered by the Central Bank of Nigeria.

Responding, Aja cautioned against celebrating high yields in the debt market, describing them as a sign of deeper economic challenges rather than progress.

According to him, high yields are usually driven by rising inflation and increased issuer risk, while also translating to higher borrowing costs for small and medium-sized enterprises.

“High yields are not a flex; you are essentially being compensated for higher inflation and issuer risk,” Aja said.

He explained that economies seeking growth typically require lower interest rates, not elevated ones that restrict access to credit.

Aja further noted that those who celebrate high yields are mostly wealthy individuals with surplus cash, stressing that the vast majority of Nigerians are excluded from such gains.

“The people who celebrate high yields are the rich who can fix cash, but 95 per cent of Nigerians don’t even have ₦500,000 in their accounts,” he added.

Meanwhile, recent capital market data showed a surge in Treasury Bill subscriptions as investors sought to benefit from rising yields.

As of June 2025, Nigeria’s total public debt stood at ₦152.40 trillion (about $99.66 billion), according to the Debt Management Office, with projections indicating further increases due to ongoing government borrowings.

The proposed 2026 budget of ₦58.18 trillion also includes a deficit of ₦23.85 trillion, raising concerns about the sustainability of the country’s fiscal position.