Five Pension Fund Administrators, PFAs, out of 18 licensed operators, accounted for 54.41 per cent of new Retirement Savings Account, RSA, registrations in the first quarter of 2026, Q1’26, indicating continued concentration in Nigeria’s pension market.
According to the Q1’26 industry report released by the National Pension Commission, PenCom, Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers led the market, accounting for 17.47 per cent of new RSA registrations during the quarter.
AccessARM Pension Managers followed with 10.63 per cent, while FCMB Pensions recorded 10.15 per cent. TangerineAPT accounted for 9.65 per cent, with Trustfund Pension closing the top five with 6.73 per cent. The remaining 13 entities manage approximately 45.6 percent of the sector.
However, PenCom said the combined share of the five leading PFAs represented a decline from the 62.11 per cent recorded in Q4’25, although market concentration remained high.
The Commission stated: “The top five Pension Fund Administrators accounted for 54.41 per cent of new RSA registrations in the quarter, and Stanbic IBTC alone accounted for 17.47 per cent. The figure is a mild reduction on the 62.11 per cent seen in Q4’25, but concentration remains elevated.”
It added that rivalries were heightening among mid-tier entities, with TangerineAPT’s entry into the top five suggesting that the competitive landscape was evolving.
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“Competition is intensifying in the mid-tier, and TangerineAPT’s emergence into the top five is a signal that the market is not settled. Concentration is not in itself a stability risk, but it raises questions of competitive intensity in the lower tier of the market,” PenCom noted.
Meanwhile, the publication disclosed that merely eight states had fully aligned with the Contributory Pension Scheme, CPS, having enacted the necessary legislation and commenced implementation through licensed PFAs.
PenCom said a further 17 states had enacted pension laws but were yet to commence implementation, making them a primary target of the Commission’s outreach in 2026.
The agency observed that Kano State remains an anomaly, as it continues to hold its pension funds with commercial banks rather than under a licensed PFA, requiring a separate regulatory pathway.
According to PenCom, the 17 states that have enacted pension legislation but are yet to commence implementation represent a major opportunity to expand pension coverage.
“With the legal framework already in place, attention will be directed towards supporting the states and PFAs with the necessary guidance and engagement to facilitate the transition from legislation to effective implementation and expanded pension coverage,” the Commission stated.
This progress unfolds as PenCom accelerates initiatives to widen retirement coverage across the nation, particularly by transitioning sub-nationals that have established the legal framework for the CPS from legislation to actual implementation.
