By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The management of Oando Plc on Wednesday evening reacted to the embargo placed on trading of its shares at the Nigerian stock market.
On Wednesday morning, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) directed the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) to suspend trading of the company’s shares on its platform.
The news was greeted with mixed feelings by investors, who had waited for long for the outcome of an investigation into allegations of financial misconduct against the oil firm.
SEC announced today that after looking into petitions filed against Oando Plc by the duo of Alhaji Dahiru Barau Mangal and Ansbury Incorporated, it would conduct a forensic audit into the affairs of the company.
It explained this was necessitated as a result of its findings from the probe, which it described as “weighty.”
According to SEC, after its comprehensive review of the petitions against Oando Plc, it found out that the company breached provisions of the Investments & Securities Act 2007, and also breached the SEC Code of Corporate Governance for Public Companies and further said it found “discrepancies in the shareholding structure of Oando Plc. Etc.”
But in a statement issued hours later, Oando Plc said it “has received communication from the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) have issued a directive to immediately suspend the trading of Oando shares, a directive to which the NSE has complied.”
The statement said, “The company is currently reviewing subsequent correspondence received today October 18, 2017 from the NSE and SEC and will provide a full statement of the Company’s position as soon as possible.”
“The company remains committed to act in the best interests of all its shareholders,” the statement concluded.
As at yesterday, Oando closed at N5.99k per share.
