By Dipo Olowookere
The board of directors of Zenith Bank, a tier 1 lender in Nigeria, has announced a closed period for trading in the bank’s shares on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).
In a statement issued and signed yesterday by the company’s scribe, Michael Otu, it was stated that the closed period commences on January 8, 2018 and ends until the bank releases its Audited Accounts and Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2017.
As a result of the closed period, all insiders and their connected persons are prohibited from trading (i.e buying selling, transferring or otherwise dealing) in the bank’s shares.
“In line with post-listing requirements of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) for quoted companies, Zenith Bank Plc hereby informs you of the scheduled commencement of the closed period for trading in the bank’s shares on January 8, 2018, in respect of the Audited Accounts and Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2017.
“All insiders and their connected persons are prohibited from trading (i.e buying selling, transferring or otherwise dealing) in the bank’s shares from January 8, 2018 until its Audited Accounts and Financial Statements for the financial year ended December 31, 2017 in released on the floor of the NSE,” the bank said in the statement.
According to Investopedia, a closed period is the time period between the completion of a listed company’s financial results and the announcing of these results to the public.
The close period is typically regarded as the one-month period preceding the release of a company’s quarterly results, and the two-month period before the release of its annual results.
Modupe Gbadeyanka 
Aduragbemi Omiyale