Global Financial Integration and Stock Market Capitalization in Nigeria

This study investigated the impact of global financial integration on stock market capitalization in Nigeria over the period 1990 to 2025.Foreign Direct Investment, Foreign Portfolio Investment, External Debt Stock and Trade Openness were used as a proxy for global financial integration while stock market capitalization serves as the dependent variable Data were obtained from the World Banks World Development Indicator (WDI), and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) statistical Bulletin 2025 using the Augmented Dickey-Fuller unit root test, and Autoregressive Distributive Lag (ARDL). The results indicate the existence of a long-run relationship between petroleum revenue and fiscal stability according to the bound test. Further findings revealed that foreign direct investment, external debt stock, and remittance received had a positive and statistically significant relationship with stock market capitalization while foreign portfolio investment had a positive but insignificant relationship with stock market capitalization. However, trade openness reported a negative and insignificant relationship with stock market capitalization. Thus it was concluded that global financial integration had a considerable impact on stock market capitalization in Nigeria It was recommended amounts other that the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission and the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment should intensify investment-friendly reforms such as tax incentives, infrastructural development, and ease of doing business initiatives to attract more long-term foreign investors into productive sectors of the Nigerian economy.