Transportation, oil & gas, and manufacturing sectors were instrumental in driving a 23.2 percent growth in Nigeria’s leasing industry in 2024, pushing the total value of outstanding leases to N5.17 trillion, up from N4.19 trillion in 2023.
The report, compiled by the Equipment Leasing Association of Nigeria (ELAN), shows that these three sectors alone accounted for more than half of the total leasing volume in 2024, underlining the importance of leasing as a tool for capital investment across Nigeria’s key industries.
The transport and logistics — the highest growing leasing sector — accounted for N1.18 trillion or 21 percent of total leases, reflecting increased demand for fleet expansion, haulage solutions, and staff mobility services in both the public and private sectors.
The oil & gas sector followed with N1.38 trillion in leased assets, representing 26 percent of the total volume, and a rise of 18 percent from its value in 2023.
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Following behind oil and gas is the manufacturing sector, which recorded a growth in leased assets of N734.3 billion in 2024 from N607.8 billion in 2023, rising by 21 percent.
Others, including telecoms and agriculture, followed with N462.2 billion and N378.6 billion, respectively.
According to the report, much of the growth was fueled by rising asset costs linked to recent economic reforms, particularly the removal of petrol subsidies and the floating of the naira, which significantly increased the capital required for asset acquisition. This pushed businesses to explore leasing as a more flexible financing option.
It suggested that leasing remains one of the few viable alternatives for businesses to meet their operational and capital needs in a high-inflation environment.
Additionally, the report explored how the agricultural sector, which has so far been long underserved in traditional financing, saw increased uptake in leasing for tractors, harvesters, and irrigation systems, enabling small and medium-scale farmers to improve productivity without large upfront capital expenditure.
Similarly, vehicle leasing, including commercial transport, trucks, and staff shuttles, continued to dominate asset categories, accounting for about 53 percent of all leased assets in 2024.
This trend further supports the transport sector, which is expected to benefit from public investment in road infrastructure and clean energy mobility solutions such as the CNG vehicle initiative.
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In terms of leasing models, finance leases made up 52 percent of total transactions, although operating leases are now increasingly gaining ground, especially among corporates seeking to outsource non-core functions, the report said.
Looking ahead, the report noted sustained growth, citing the leasing’s potential to close critical financing gaps in areas such as health, power, construction, and manufacturing.
It cited that the implementation of the Equipment Leasing Registration Authority (ELRA), which operationalises the Equipment Leasing Act of 2015, is also expected to strengthen regulatory oversight and improve investors’ confidence.
ELAN noted that leasing volumes have grown significantly over the past decade, rising above 300 percent from N1.1 trillion in 2015 to over N5.1 trillion in 2024 and contributing about N24.6 trillion to the Nigerian economy.
