street name
Street Name means your shares are held in your stockbroker's name on the register, not your own name, even though you are still the true owner.
In plain English
Bisi in Lagos sold a small plot of land she inherited and decided to put ₦2,000,000 of it into shares on the Nigerian Exchange, working through a broker her cousin recommended.
When her share certificate never arrived in her own name, she panicked and called the broker, convinced something had gone wrong. Nothing had gone wrong. Her shares were sitting calmly under what is called a street name, which simply means the shares are registered in the broker's or custodian's name, not hers directly, even though she is still the owner in every way that matters.
Think of it like a landlord holding your rent money in a joint account before passing it to the estate agency. The money is yours, the account just has someone else's name on it for convenience. In the same way, your shares are legally yours, you get the dividends, you get the voting rights if you ask for them, but the register shows the broker's name because it makes buying, selling and settling trades faster and cleaner.
This is standard practice everywhere, from the Nigerian Exchange to the London Stock Exchange. A Nigerian working in Manchester who buys shares through an app like Trading 212 or Hargreaves Lansdown is also holding in street name, since the platform's nominee company sits on the register, not the individual investor.
The only time this becomes a real issue is if the broker is not properly regulated. That is why choosing a broker licensed by the Securities and Exchange Commission in Nigeria, or the FCA in the UK, matters more than the paperwork itself.
Bisi buys ₦2,000,000 worth of shares in a listed bank through her broker. The shares appear on the company's register under the broker's nominee name, but Bisi's account statement shows she owns them, and any dividend paid lands in her account.
Questions people ask
Does holding shares in street name mean I do not really own them?
No. You remain the beneficial owner. The broker's name on the register is just an administrative arrangement to make trading and settlement smoother.
Can I ask for shares to be registered in my own name instead?
Yes, in many markets you can request direct registration, though it often takes longer to trade and may involve extra paperwork with the registrar.
How do I know my street name shares are safe?
Confirm your broker is licensed by the SEC in Nigeria or the FCA in the UK, and always check that your account statement matches your trading history.
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