The Series 1 offer exceeded the company’s initial target of about $3.71 million (₦5 billion) and is the first issuance under a Securities and Exchange Commission-approved commercial paper program of up to approximately $37.12 million (₦50 billion).

The dollar equivalents are based on the Central Bank of Nigeria’s official exchange rate around the August 25 announcement.

The Y Combinator-backed agritech company announced the transaction during a signing ceremony and media briefing in Lagos.

The oversubscribed issuance introduces a capital-market funding channel alongside the bank and institutional debt that has previously supported ThriveAgric’s operations.

ThriveAgric will use the proceeds as working capital to purchase produce from smallholder farmers, aggregate the commodities and supply food processors, fast-moving consumer goods companies and other buyers.

The initial funding will prioritize commodities such as maize, soybeans, sesame and sorghum for domestic demand and selected export opportunities.

The commercial paper will not directly finance crop production, which can require nine to 12 months before harvest.

It will instead support the shorter trading cycle that begins when ThriveAgric buys harvested produce and ends when the commodities are delivered to buyers, allowing the company to recover and redeploy its capital more quickly.

“This is why it’s not equity; it is debt to expand our business in Nigeria,” ThriveAgric Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder Uka Eje said. Although the company did not disclose the issuance yield, Eje said the financing terms were more suitable for the agricultural sector than other available forms of debt.

The funding also supports ThriveAgric’s role as a buyer for farmers who may otherwise struggle to secure reliable markets for their crops.

Under the company’s model, farmers receive inputs and production support, repay their financing with part of their harvest and sell the remaining produce.

ThriveAgric then collects and aggregates the commodities before supplying established corporate buyers.

Anchoria Advisory Services Limited served as the lead issuing house. Participating investors included pension fund administrators, asset managers and commercial banks, expanding ThriveAgric’s funding base beyond conventional bank loans.

“Securing SEC approval for our ₦50 billion CP Programme and completing this oversubscribed ₦5 billion Series 1 raise validates our disciplined approach to corporate governance and capital management,” Eje said in the company’s announcement reported by New Telegraph.

He added that the financing would help the company expand its outgrower network and purchase produce promptly from smallholder farmers.

The transaction provides ThriveAgric with a structure for making additional commercial paper issuances rather than negotiating a separate bank facility each time it requires working capital.

The company expects to issue further series over the next 12 months as it works toward the program’s approved limit, subject to its financing requirements and investor demand.

The program is focused on Nigeria rather than geographic expansion. Eje said Nigeria accounts for about 90% of ThriveAgric’s business, giving the company room to increase commodity procurement, aggregation, financing and trading within its largest market.

Nigeria’s agricultural sector accounted for 23.16% of the country’s real gross domestic product in the first quarter of 2026 and expanded by 3.15% from the same period in 2025, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

Crop production remained the sector’s largest component, making access to working capital important for companies that connect farms with processors, manufacturers and commodity markets.

ThriveAgric reports that it has worked with more than 1.2 million smallholder farmers across five African countries.

Its operating system supports farmer registration, input distribution, field monitoring, inventory management and the movement of harvested produce to buyers.

The latest transaction continues a funding strategy built largely around debt. In March 2022, ThriveAgric announced $56.4 million in debt financing from local commercial banks and institutional investors, including a $1.75 million co-investment grant from the USAID-funded West Africa Trade and Investment Hub.

That financing was intended to grow the company’s farmer network and support expansion into Ghana, Zambia and Kenya.

Unlike the 2022 financing, the commercial paper program is designed to deepen ThriveAgric’s Nigerian operations and match short-term borrowing with faster commodity-trading cycles.