Nigeria’s Debt Management Office (DMO) has refuted claims that the federal government paid $401.1 million in March 2025 to service its first-ever US dollar-denominated bond issued in the domestic market, describing the figure as “wrong in its entirety.”
In a statement on Thursday, the DMO clarified that the actual amount used for servicing the bond was $44.6 million (N67.99 billion), not the $401.1 million (N611.7 billion) being cited in some media reports.
“The figure published by the DMO on its website for Q1, 2025, as Debt Service on the US Dollar-denominated Bond was N67.9 billion ($44.6 million) and not N611.7 billion ($401.1 million). The figure of N611.71 billion quoted by some analysts is the Debt Service for all outstanding FGN Bonds (excluding the US Dollar-denominated Bond),” the agency said.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the Q1 2025 Domestic Debt Service figure published on the DMO’s website for Federal Government of Nigeria Bonds in March 2025 was N611.7 billion. In the same report and on a separate line, the Debt Service for Domestic FGN US Dollar Bond for March 2025 was N67.99 billion,” it added.
The DMO further explained that no principal repayment has been made on the bond in question, which is due to mature in 2029.
“The Bond is to be repaid in full at maturity in 2029,” the agency stated.
On July 1, some local media outlets published reports claiming that Nigeria spent $401.1 million servicing its domestic US dollar bond in March. The reports alleged that the payment was the largest single domestic debt service item that month, fueling fears about the rising cost of FX-linked obligations in Nigeria’s debt profile.
Rising public debt
The clarification comes amid mounting concerns over Nigeria’s growing public debt.
As of March 31, 2025, the West African nation’s total public debt stock stood at $97.99 billion, up 22.8% from $79.88 billion recorded a year earlier, according to official data. The increase reflects a rise of $18.18 billion year-on-year.
Domestic debt rose to $51.66 billion in March 2025 from $43.06 billion in the same period of 2024, marking a 20% increase.
On a quarterly basis, domestic borrowings also grew by $2.87 billion or 5.9%, from $48.78 billion in December 2024.
Of the domestic debt stock, the federal government accounted for $49.14 billion, while the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (the country’s capital city) jointly held $2.54 billion.
Notably, state-level domestic debt saw a modest decline from $2.60 billion in Q4 2024 and $2.67 billion in Q1 2024.
External debt also rose sharply, reaching $46.34 billion by the end of March 2025—up from $36.74 billion a year earlier.
The DMO’s explanation is part of efforts to maintain transparency and correct public misinterpretations of its published data.
Dollar conversions in this report are based on the official exchange rate of N1,525 to $1 as of July 10, 2025
