International Workplace Group, operating through its HQ brand, is expanding its network of flexible co-working spaces across Nigeria in partnership with The Alternative Bank, targeting secondary cities where small and medium-sized enterprises make up the overwhelming majority of business activity. The partnership plans to open between six and eight new locations across the country before the end of 2026.
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Taking workspace access beyond Lagos
IWG’s first decade of operations in Nigeria was concentrated in Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt. The new expansion phase deliberately targets secondary cities, including Kano, Jos, Maiduguri, and others, where SMEs account for between 80 and 90 per cent of commercial activity but have had little access to professional workspace infrastructure.
IWG Country Manager Ayo Akinmade noted that setting up a physical office in many of these cities can consume an entire startup’s early capital. Rather than spending ₦5 million fitting out an office and having nothing left to run the business, entrepreneurs can now access a desk for approximately ₦100,000 per month through the HQ model.
The cost difference is not marginal — it is the difference between a business being able to operate and scale, or exhausting its resources before it properly begins.
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Why the banking partnership matters
The collaboration with The Alternative Bank goes beyond simply providing workspace. The model embeds financial services within the co-working environment, giving entrepreneurs in the spaces access to banking products, financing conversations, and financial tools while they work.
Mohammed Yunusa, Director of Products, Digital and Innovation at The Alternative Bank, noted that the setup is designed to create an ecosystem where problems can be solved collectively, and where access to finance is woven into the daily environment of business owners rather than being a separate, often intimidating process.
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What this means for SMEs in secondary cities
Nigerian SMEs outside the major commercial hubs have historically operated with significantly fewer institutional resources than their counterparts in Lagos and Abuja. Professional workspace, reliable internet, meeting rooms, and proximity to financial services have largely been urban luxuries.
By plugging secondary city locations into IWG’s global network of over one million rooms across 121 countries, the partnership also gives Nigerian entrepreneurs connectivity beyond their immediate geography, a practical step toward making local businesses more internationally competitive.
The partnership has already produced 16 co-working spaces across Nigeria under the HQ model, with further expansion underway throughout 2026.
