By Dipo Olowookere
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has said it was working with the NASD over-the-counter (OTC) Securities Exchange and other exchanges to put in place incentives to attract Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to the capital market this year.
The Director-General of SEC, Mr Lamido Yuguda, while speaking in his New Year message in Abuja over the weekend, stated that this is one of the reforms the agency was considering in 2022.
According to him, SEC will organise a capital market conference to launch a revised version of the 10-year capital market master plan to reflect the dynamism of the market and developments in financial technology (fintech), among others.
He expressed his desire to attract SMEs listing this year and also have the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited and Dangote Refinery in Lagos list their shares on the stock exchange.
“In conjunction with the NASD Platform, [we are working to] provide the necessary incentives and support to attract SMEs to get listed. Already, rules on Crowdfunding to encourage new funding sources for SMEs have been developed.
“The SEC will continue the enhancement of the existing regulatory framework guiding the operations of the market by keeping pace with the evolving changes in market practices, especially with the advent of Financial Technology and digital assets,” Mr Yuguda was quoted as saying in a statement made available to Business Post.
The SEC DG expressed confidence that the results of the various initiatives implemented will begin to gradually manifest, spurring developments in many aspects of the market.
He also expressed optimism that as the restrictions of COVID-19 and its variants ease, the market will witness renewed confidence expected to introduce fresh investments from domestic and foreign investors.
“As we expect improvements in both economic and capital market activities, we must remain committed to developing the market in line with the 10-year master plan.
“Some of the key initiatives to be pursued in 2022 are the repeal of the Investment and Securities Act (ISA) 2007 and [the] passing of the Investment and Securities Bill 2021 to align the enabling law with the realities and trends in capital market regulation and practice in Nigeria.”
Mr Yuguda said the commission will improve coordination amongst stakeholders such as the National Assembly, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), the Debt Management Office (DMO), the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) and the National Pension Commission (PENCOM) to create synergies and further improve upon the agency’s effectiveness towards ensuring that the objectives of realising the capital market master plan are met.
He expressed the desire of SEC to carry out advocacy efforts this year “and strong capacity building initiatives on non-interest capital markets products and services in order to attract sub-nationals and corporate issuances to this market segment.”
“We also plan to provide extra support to the registered commodities trading platforms to complement government’s renewed diversification efforts in agriculture and carry out workshops to deepen the commodities trading ecosystem,” he added.
Adedapo Adesanya