SEC Boss Assures Stakeholders of Robust Capital Market

By Dipo Olowookere

Acting Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Ms Mary Uduk, has assured stakeholders that her agency will continue to work towards making the Nigerian capital market very robust and world class.

Ms Uduk gave this assurance last Friday when she met with members and executives of the Association of Stockbroking Houses of Nigeria (ASHON) in Abuja.

However, she said to achieve this goal, various stakeholders in the Nigerian market must be ready to work together with SEC, which is the apex regulatory agency in the capital market in the country.

According to her, SEC is willing to collaborate with the association to lift the market, and reposition it among leading capital markets that meet international standards and best practices.

She said the commission was open to suggestions and actions that would make the capital market more vibrant, but added that such collaborative efforts would be with associations and persons that are fit and proper to operate in the market.

Ms Uduk disclosed that a well-functioning capital market was essential to Nigeria’s economic development, noting that the country must have a world class capital market that is strong, sustainable, effective, and plays a central role in economic development to realise its full potential.

The SEC chief commended members of the group on their efforts so far in deepening the market especially for their support towards the financial literacy campaign of the SEC and assured them of the readiness of the SEC to continue to work with them.

“It is good that we work together to take our capital market to the height we want it to attain. We are ready to engage with you to give us clarity on several issues relating to the market.

“We are open to discussions that will benefit the market; the market is the most important in all our engagements,” she said.

Chairman of ASHON, Onyewechukwu Ezeagu, pledged the group’s commitment to the growth of the capital market, adding that whatever must be done to move the market forward is of concern to the association.