NSE Unveils X-Academy to Enhance Capital Market Literacy

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

A knowledge-platform designed to provide education services to individuals who want to gain a better understanding of various aspects of the capital markets has been launched by the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

The platform, called the X-Academy, was unveiled to the media on Thursday in Lagos.

Chief Executive Officer of NSE, Mr Oscar Onyema, while addressing newsmen at the event, explained that the training programmes at X-Academy will provide individuals and businesses with a robust and effective array of training solutions that will ensure participants are abreast with trends in the rapidly evolving financial markets.

He said, “As a socially responsible organization devoted to enhancing the fortunes of Nigerians and our investors, we are confident that participants of programmes offered by X-Academy will be better positioned to make informed financial decisions.”

Mr Onyema noted that the X-Academy offers a wide range of courses geared towards bridging the knowledge gap of dealing members, issuers, investors and the general public about products and services of the capital market.

He said the establishment of X-Academy was consistent with the Exchange’s tradition of pioneering far-reaching innovations within the Nigerian capital market.

According to him, it also feeds directly into the National Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS) which was launched by the Federal Government of Nigeria in 2012 to reduce the number of adult Nigerians who are financially excluded, from 46.3 percent in 2010 to 20 percent in 2020.

It was disclosed that the X-Academy will offer programmes this year, which are built around six broad themes: Listings and Trading on the NSE, Products of the NSE, Market Data and Technology, Financial Education, Corporate Governance, and Risk Management and Compliance.

The first training from the X-Academy, we gathered, is titled Legal and Risk Aspects of Derivatives and Central Counterparty Clearing (CCP) Transactions, is scheduled to hold from June 12–15 at the Civic Center, Lagos.

On her part, the Acting Head of Corporate Services Division at the NSE, Ms Pai Gamde, pointed out that the “X-Academy is a crucial step to enhancing financial literacy levels in Nigeria and equipping professionals with requisite skill sets to deliver innovative solutions for the challenges confronting our financial sector.”

She said the “programmes offered by X-Academy will be facilitated by seasoned and certified subject matter experts with both local and international exposure to practical experience. Partnerships with professional bodies to ensure that courses taken at X-Academy are award points under the Continuous Development Programmes of these bodies.”

This initiative, she remarked, could not have come at a better time when the market is beginning to recover from the waning investors’ confidence.

“The Exchange has taken into great consideration the state of the economy as well as income levels to make these programmes affordable to Nigerians,” she quipped.