Investment platform Bamboo has announced a 20 per cent reduction in trading commissions after an app outage prevented some users from accessing their accounts and participating smoothly in the opening of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery initial public offering.

The commission cut applies to trades in both U.S. stocks and Nigerian Exchange-listed equities and will remain in effect until the end of September, according to a statement by Bamboo Chief Executive Officer Richmond Bassey.

Bamboo apologised to users after the platform experienced heavy traffic on Monday, when the Dangote Refinery IPO opened for subscription.

The company said some customers were unable to log into the app, fund their accounts or place investment orders as demand surged beyond what its systems could handle.

Bassey acknowledged that the company had prepared for increased demand but said its efforts were insufficient.

Bamboo said its systems have since been restored and that additional changes have been made to strengthen the platform against similar traffic spikes in the future.

The outage occurred as thousands of Nigerians attempted to subscribe to the Dangote Refinery public offer, which opened on September 14, 2026.

Bamboo was not the only investment platform affected.

Cowrywise also reported service disruptions as investors rushed to participate in the offer, while other investment platforms experienced unusually high traffic during the opening day.

The heavy traffic reflected the strong interest surrounding the Dangote Refinery IPO, one of the largest public share offerings in Nigeria’s capital market.

The official offer comprises 4.1 billion ordinary shares priced at ₦525 each, with a minimum subscription of 10 shares worth ₦5,250.

The offer opened on September 14 and is scheduled to close on October 13, 2026.

Bamboo also reassured affected users that the IPO was still open and that share allocation would not be handled on a first-come, first-served basis, meaning users who were unable to complete transactions during the outage had not automatically lost the opportunity to participate.

The investment platform said the temporary 20 per cent commission reduction was part of its effort to rebuild confidence after the disruption.

Bamboo is one of the approved digital channels through which investors can subscribe to the Dangote Refinery IPO.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has advised investors to use only officially approved receiving agents and subscription platforms, warning against unauthorised websites, agents and individuals seeking to collect funds for the offer.

The disruption has also highlighted the pressure Nigeria’s growing retail-investor base can place on digital investment infrastructure during large public offers.

Strong demand for the Dangote IPO caused unusually high traffic across several fintech and investment platforms, with some users reporting failed logins and difficulties completing transactions shortly after the offer opened.

Bamboo said its app is now fully operational and users can continue to access the platform as the Dangote Refinery offer remains open until October 13.