Sell Your Business in Nigeria: Confidential Sale and Buyer-Search Planning

If you are thinking “I want to sell my business in Nigeria,” the next step is to prepare the business and the sale process, not to circulate sensitive accounts to everyone who claims to know an investor. A clear mandate helps protect confidentiality and makes buyer conversations more useful.

Wigmore Trading welcomes business-sale and buyer-introduction enquiries in Nigeria. We can discuss sale-readiness, search and coordination requirements, with scope and specialist roles agreed separately. A discussion does not guarantee a buyer, price, exclusivity or completion.

Clarify the owner’s objective

Decide whether you seek a full exit, partial sale, succession arrangement, strategic partner or sale of defined assets. Identify the shareholders and other parties whose agreement is needed. Establish what you are prepared to disclose and who is authorised to speak for the business.

Family-owned and owner-managed companies should consider how operations depend on the departing owner. A buyer may need a transition period, management continuity or clarity about related-party arrangements.

Prepare a controlled information pack

Use appropriate legal and confidentiality arrangements before detailed disclosure. A secure data room and staged access can be more suitable than uncontrolled email attachments. Keep a record of who receives information and under what permission.

Define the right buyer

A strategic corporate buyer, private equity investor, management team and individual entrepreneur can have different objectives. Specify the commercial fit, decision-making and funding readiness you expect. Do not treat a claimed investor network as proof of an available buyer.

For foreign buyers, consider the additional legal, tax, regulatory and practical questions. International interest does not remove the need to verify identity, authority and capacity through an appropriate process.

Set realistic pricing and terms

Obtain qualified valuation, accounting and tax advice. Separate an asking price from an independently supported valuation and from the amount ultimately received after adjustments, costs and obligations. Structure can matter as much as the headline price.

Consider debt, working capital, retained assets, warranties, deferred consideration and transition support with the appropriate advisers. Do not sign binding terms based only on a preliminary introduction.

Agree the advisory engagement

Clarify mandate, confidentiality, permitted approaches, fees, exclusivity, conflicts and termination. Identify who provides regulated or specialist advice and who coordinates the process. Use the FCCPC merger-review resources as a starting point for discussing relevant requirements with counsel.

Local enquiries in Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt should state where the business operates and what on-site assessment is needed. Actual geographic and professional coverage must be confirmed.

Will my company be publicly advertised?

Only the agreed process should determine disclosure. Start with a non-confidential description and discuss permissions before sharing identifiable details.

What should I send Wigmore?

Provide sector, broad location, approximate scale, ownership objective and desired timing. Avoid sensitive records in the initial sales enquiry.

Related guides

• Mergers and Acquisitions in Nigeria: Advisory and Deal-Readiness Guide
• Buy a Business in Nigeria: Acquisition Search and Due-Diligence Planning
• Acquiring Nigerian Businesses by Sector: Licences, Assets and Due Diligence

Updated 2 November 2026. Availability, pricing, documentation and the actual service scope require confirmation for the particular enquiry.