Economy
SEC Witch-hunting Oando, Wants Its Downfall—Shareholders
By Dipo Olowookere
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been accused of making ‘deliberate’ efforts to frustrate Oando Plc and possibly get it out of business.
These accusations were made on Wednesday by some minority shareholders of the energy firm at a news briefing held in Lagos to frown at the decision of SEC to cancel the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the company earlier scheduled for Tuesday, June 11, 2019 in the metropolis.
Addressing journalists at the press conference, the shareholders wondered what special interest the apex capital market regulator has in Oando and why it allegedly wants the ‘downfall’ of the firm.
They therefore, called on the Nigerian authorities to prevail on the management of SEC to be fair in its dealings, especially with Oando and let the company be so as not to chase investors away, which could affect the economy.
They described Oando as the only prospering indigenous oil company operating in Nigeria and should not be frustrated out of business because its downfall will definitely not be a loss to the regulator, but shareholders of the company, who have invested their hard earned money in the firm.
“As shareholders, we call on our President, Vice President and members of National Assembly to call the management of SEC, who has been operating without a board in the past four years, to order.
“They need to do this now to save the only prospering indigenous oil company, its enduring shareholders, the capital market and the nation from the erosion of confidence in the capital market and the economy at large,” one of the shareholders of Oando Plc, Mr Patrick Ajudua, said.
Speaking with newsmen at the event, Secretary General of Association for Investors’ Liberation, Mr Hamza Ridhwan, condemned in “absolute terms the way and manner chosen by SEC in announcing the cancellation on the eve of the event, despite having ample time to do same.”
According to him, “We have shareholders who have come in from all over the country, and it’s disappointing and disheartening to think that SEC didn’t think it worthy to consider us, the esteemed shareholders, when determining when to notify the general public on the suspension of the AGM.”
“What kind of regulator disregards the shareholders it is supposed to protect like this? We ask why the AGM was suspended. Why was it done at such short time?” he queried, challenging SEC to “tell us how this last-minute suspension of the AGM is in our best interest.”
Mr Ridhwan further said, “We find the current action of SEC even more alarming, especially after Oando made N180 billion in losses and has reversed this to two consecutive years of profit. Profits that fill us with hope that dividends will be paid soon.”
“We fully support the regulator and applaud the government for institutions such as SEC as we know the imperative role they play in regulating and protecting the capital market.
“However, in the case of Oando, we are not convinced that SEC has acted in our best interest or protected our investments. We call on the government to intervene,” he posited.
Another shareholder, Comrade Lawrence Oguntoye, who is the President of Distinct Shareholders Association, argued that SEC’s action against the valid Oando AGM was an injustice and infringement on the rights of the shareholders.
“Most shareholders who came from very far states were disgraced and highly disappointed at venue. SEC ought to have considered the minority shareholders if truly it is protecting our interest, but it seems there is a skeleton in SEC’s cupboard apart from this forensic report.
“This is not fair considering the fact that shareholders’ funds have been eroded today, share price has dropped drastically, not to talk of negative state of mind of investors,” he said.
Business Post reports that on Monday, SEC announced the suspension of the Oando AGM, citing a suit instituted by the company as the basis for its action.
“The Securities & Exchange Commission (the Commission) hereby notifies the public that further to the Ex-parte Order of the Federal High Court, Ikoyi Lagos in SUIT NO: FHC/L/CS/910/19 IN MR. JUBRIL ADEWALE TINUBU & ANOR V SECURITIES & EXCHANGE COMMISSION & ANOR, the Annual General Meeting of Oando Plc (a company listed on the Nigerian and Johannesburg Stock Exchanges) scheduled to hold at the Zinnia Hall, Eko Hotels and Suites, Plot 1415, Adetokunbo Ademola Street, Victoria Island, Lagos on Tuesday, June 11, 2019 at 10: 00am has been suspended till further notice.
“Accordingly, the commission has directed the suspension of the Annual General Meeting of Oando Plc to allow the parties maintain status quo,” it had said.
However, Oando, in a statement, disagreed with the SEC action, saying it would take every legal step to protest its business and shareholders.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Five securities pulled down the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 1.72 per cent on Friday, August 14, cutting the market capitalisation by N47.04 billion to N2.689 trillion from N2.727 trillion, and slicing the NASD Security Index (NSI) by 78.37 points to 4,465.83 from 4,532.03 points.
11 Plc led the price decliners yesterday after its price went down by N15.03 to N230.00 per share from N245.03 per share. MRS Oil Plc weakened by N13.20 to N118.80 per unit from N132.00 per unit, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc slid by N10.30 to N99.46 per share from N109.76 per share, Okitipupa Plc fell by N6.99 to N270.01 per unit from N277.00 per unit, and Afriland Properties Plc dipped by N2.00 to N20.00 per share from N22.00 per share.
Business Post reports that the OTC securities exchange recorded four gainers during the session, led by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc, which appreciated by N9.85 to N169.85 per unit from N160.00 per unit. IPWA Plc gained 70 Kobo to close at N10.41 per share versus N9.71 per share, Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc rose by 4 Kobo to 54 Kobo per unit from 50 Kobo per unit, and Geo-Fluids Plc improved by 1 Kobo to N2.06 per share from N2.05 per share.
The volume of trades soared by 64.8 per cent to 3.2 million units from the previous session’s 1.9 million units, the value of transactions jumped by 78.2 per cent to N375.7 million from N210.8 million, and the number of deals surged by 35.3 per cent to 46 deals from 34 deals.
Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc was the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units sold for N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 79.0 million units exchanged for N5.7 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the day as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units transacted for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units traded for N415.7 million.
By Dipo Olowookere
The dominance of the bears on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited was consolidated on Friday, after further inflicting an 0.12 per cent loss at the close of trading activity.
All the key sectors of the local stock market turned red yesterday as a result of sustained profit-taking, though the industrial goods space was flat.
The insurance counter lost 1.49 per cent, the energy index shed 0.63 per cent, the consumer goods segment declined by 0.46 per cent, and the banking sector tumbled by 0.23 per cent.
Consequently, the All-Share Index (ASI) retreated by 398.18 points to 242,619.20 points from 243,017.38 points, and the market capitalisation receded by N257 billion to N156.624 trillion from N156.881 trillion.
Fortis Global Insurance lost 9.31 per cent to trade at N2.63, Omatek depreciated by 9.04 per cent to N1.51, John Holt slipped by 9.00 per cent to N9.10, RT Briscoe slumped by 7.94 per cent to N11.60, and Dangote Sugar went down by 7.79 per cent to N64.55.
But International Energy Insurance gained 9.92 per cent to sell for N5.32, Trans-Nationwide Express appreciated by 9.65 per cent to N2.84, Guinea Insurance improved by 6.67 per cent to 80 Kobo, Regency Alliance grew by 6.25 per cent to 85 Kobo, and Japaul jumped by 5.36 per cent to N2.95.
The market breadth index remained negative, with 30 price losers and 21 price gainers, indicating weak investor sentiment.
The level of activity contracted yesterday, with the trading volume, value, and number of deals down by 66.67 per cent, 10.65 per cent, and 5.60 per cent, respectively.
This was because market participants transacted 1.4 billion shares worth N45.3 billion in 39,134 deals during the session compared with the 4.2 billion shares valued at n50.7 billion traded in 41,454 deals on Thursday.
Fortis Global Insurance was the most active equity for the day, with a turnover of 874.1 million units valued at N2.4 billion, Cornerstone Insurance sold 100.3 million units worth N506.5 million, Universal Insurance traded 56.7 million units for N44.5 million, Sterling Holdings exchanged 53.3 million units worth N402.9 million, and MTN Nigeria transacted 44.6 million units valued at N31.4 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira maintained stability against the United States Dollar in the different segments of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Friday, August 14, according to data obtained by Business Post.
At the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM), the local currency remained unchanged at N1,357.65/$1, but lost N6.05 against the Pound Sterling to trade at N1,840.10 versus the previous session’s N1,834.05/£1, and depreciated against the Euro by N4.70 to sell for N1,571.70/€1 compared with the preceding day’s N1,567.00/€1.
At the black market, the Nigerian currency traded flat against the Dollar at N1,395/$1, but gained N3 at the GTBank forex desk to quote at N1,364/$1 versus Thursday’s exchange rate of N1,367/$1.
Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed that interbank FX transactions surged by 51.2 per cent to $119.594 million from $79.097 million. These transactions were executed in 137 deals, higher than the 98 deals recorded a day earlier.
FX inflows from exporters, remittances and other sources, alongside demand from importers and individuals requiring Dollars, continue to shape market conditions.
Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market recovered yesterday after experiencing a downturn in the previous sessions following reports that index provider MSCI has proposed new “non-operating company” screens for its Global Investable Market Indexes. Although the framework does not explicitly target cryptocurrency, it evaluates whether a company’s core operating assets constitute more than 50 per cent of its total holdings.
Heavy digital asset treasury adopters, including Strategy and Metaplanet, fail the proposed criteria and face potential removal during upcoming index rebalancings. While inclusion in major equity benchmarks previously allowed passive index funds and ETFs to automatically acquire these stocks, their removal could trigger forced institutional selling.
Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 0.7 per cent to $0.07, Binance Coin (BNB) expanded by 0.6 per cent to $611.34, Ethereum (ETH) added 0.4 per cent to trade at $1,879.65, and Bitcoin (BTC) increased by 0.2 per cent to $63,045.87, with Ripple (XRP), the US Dollar Tether (USDT), and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) flat at $1.00, respectively.
But Cardano (ADA) lost 1.2 per cent to trade at $0.1795, TRON (TRX) shed 0.4 per cent to finish at $0.3323, and Solana (SOL) declined by 0.2 per cent to $75.60.
