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PiggyVest Report Exposes Nigeria’s Income Inequality
The 2025 PiggyVest Savings Report has revealed stark income disparities in Nigeria, showing that only five percent of adults earn ₦1 million or more per month, while nearly 60 percent earn below ₦100,000 or have no income at all. The findings point to widening inequality and a deepening savings crisis driven largely by high inflation and rising living costs.
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Despite a small, high-earning segment at the top, the report paints a troubling picture of financial vulnerability across the broader population.
Only 6% of Nigerians Feel Financially Secure
Speaking at a roundtable on the report, **PiggyVest Co-founder and Chief Operations Officer, Odunayo Eweniyi, said the data highlights Nigeria’s fragile financial health.
According to the report, only six percent of Nigerians consider themselves financially secure, leaving 94 percent in need of urgent support.
“We cannot out-innovate social issues. If only six percent of Nigerians are financially secure, then 94 percent need help. While the private sector is providing solutions, many of the challenges and their fixes still lie with the government,” Eweniyi said.
She stressed that private-sector innovation alone cannot resolve systemic socio-economic challenges without stronger government intervention.
Key Findings from the PiggyVest Savings Report 2025
The report, which surveyed a broad national sample including rural communities, highlights several critical trends:
- Income Disparity: Only 5% earn above ₦1 million monthly, while about 58–60% earn below ₦100,000 or have no income.
- Income Distribution: Around 30% earn below ₦100,000 monthly, while 28% report having no income at all.
- Middle-Income Recovery: Nigerians earning between ₦100,000 and ₦250,000 rebounded to 24% in 2025 after a previous dip.
- Inflation Pressure: Nominal income growth has been eroded by rising living costs, leaving 94% of Nigerians feeling financially insecure.
- Demographic Gaps: Younger Nigerians (Gen Z) and women are more likely to be low-income earners, while higher earners tend to be older.
Fintech Gains Limited by Structural Barriers
Eweniyi noted that while fintech platforms have expanded access to savings and investment tools, structural barriers such as identity verification gaps and weak credit systems continue to limit financial inclusion.
She emphasised that sustainable progress will require coordinated action between government and the private sector to tackle the root causes of poverty, unemployment, and income instability.
Shift in Savings Behaviour as Pressures Rise
Also speaking, PiggyVest Co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer Joshua Chibueze said the company is deepening its data-driven analysis to better understand how Nigerians are coping financially.
He observed a notable shift in behaviour, with more Nigerians prioritising emergency savings and family obligations, rather than discretionary goals such as relocation plans.
According to Chibueze, three years of consistent research are aimed at delivering actionable insights to individuals, businesses, and policymakers navigating Nigeria’s changing economic realities.
Government Calls for Deeper Public–Private Collaboration
Representing the Lagos State Government, the Project Coordinator of Lagos CARES at the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF), Chidozie Ezemenyiba, called for stronger collaboration with private-sector players to tackle unemployment and support micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
He highlighted LSETF’s loan scheme, which offers up to ₦5 million at a single-digit interest rate of nine percent per annum, and disclosed that the fund has disbursed over ₦23 billion in loans and more than ₦2 billion in grants to Lagos residents since inception.
Need for Coordinated Action
The PiggyVest Savings Report 2025 underscores a sobering reality: while financial technology can improve access to tools, addressing Nigeria’s savings crisis and income inequality will require policy reform, targeted social intervention, and sustained public–private collaboration.
