NSE Slams N46m Fine on African Alliance, Shareholders React

By Dipo Olowookere

A fine of N46.1 million has been slammed on African Alliance Plc by the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) for failing to submit its earnings for 2015 and 2016 financial years.

An NSE X-Compliance Report released on April 12, 2018 disclosed that African Alliance was a wrong filer of audited accounts.

It further said the insurer also falls short of the minimum listing standards in terms of timely disclosure of its audited annual financial performance, pointing out that the company has Missed Regulatory Fillings (MRF) or Awaiting Regulatory Approval (AWR) of their primary regulators, which is the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM).

It was gathered that the insurance company has failed to declare meaningful dividends or bonus to shareholders for four consecutive years just as its results have been abysmal within those periods as well.

This, according to shareholders of African Alliance Plc, is becoming a source of worry for them, emphasising that they were not happy with the way the firm was being run by its management.

The shareholders said instead of the company to pay them dividend for their investments, the firm was busy paying millions in fines to regulatory bodies for what they should have prevented in the first place.

President of Progressive Shareholders Association of Nigeria (PSAN), Mr Boniface Okezie, lamented that most insurance companies have corporate governance issues and have been unprofitable for shareholders for some years now as management has not been able to give good returns on investment.

“We commend NAICOM because it will not approve any account unless it is thorough, kudos to the commission for safe guarding the interest of the investors as well as customers,” he said.

Mr Okezie said if insurance companies fix their problems and start rolling out good results and reward shareholders, their shares would rise at the stock market.

“As long as you don’t pay a commensurate dividend to the shareholders, your stock value will continue to go down,” he posited.