NSE Lists 1.9bn Shares, Completes Decade Long Demutualisation
Decade long demutualisation of the Nigerian Stock Exchange was completed on Friday, October 15, after successful listing of 1.964 billion shares of the Nigerian Exchange Group Plc, the new entity into which former Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has transformed.
Ahead of the shares listing which was held Friday, former NSE CEO, Oscar Onyema who assumed duty on April 4, 2011, resigned his membership of the board the previous day, Thursday, October 14, after spending 10 years and six months.
His resignation from the board of the Exchange as non-executive director paved way for his assumption of duties as pioneer CEO of The Nigerian Stock Exchange Group, and it complies with 184(2)(a) of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Consolidated Rules 2013.
The rule states that “A securities exchange shall have a code of conduct for its council members or board which shall be approved by the Commission, and shall contain amongst others the following provisions, to wit, that the council members or board shall: (a) not be a staff of a quoted company and its subsidiaries.”
By the demutualisation and Friday’s listing of the shares of The Nigerian Exchange Group Plc, the Group becomes a publicly quoted entity with dealing members and investing public as shareholders.
What this implies therefore is that the former Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has ceased to be a private sector, non-profit making business which it used to be.
Now it is a profit-making group of companies publicly quoted on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (one of its three subsidiaries), and it is accountable to its shareholders comprising professional stock dealing member firms and ordinary shareholders.
In a statement announcing the listing by introduction, the Group stated “Having satisfied the Listing Requirements of The Exchange and obtained relevant regulatory approvals, NGX Group is now listed in the Financial Services and Capital Market Infrastructure sector of the Exchange, with the ticker “NGXGROUP”.
“A total of 1,964,115,918 shares were admitted to trading, representing the issued share capital of the Group as of today,” the release stated.
Commenting on the listing, the Group Chairman, Nigerian Exchange Group Plc, Abimbola Ogunbanjo said, “Today’s Listing of NGX Group on NGX is another milestone attained under the Group’s 2018 – 2021 corporate strategy. Our shareholder base has more than doubled since our demutualisation in March 2021 and our valued shareholders will benefit from the enhanced liquidity that listing on The Exchange will facilitate.
“This listing will also enable a much wider universe of potential investors and market participants to share in our growth journey. As a Board, we embrace the letter and spirit of the listing requirements and we are committed to transparent disclosure, proactive stakeholder engagement and exemplary corporate governance,” Ogunbanjo stated.
Also speaking, the pioneer Group Chief Executive Officer, NGX Group, Oscar Onyema, stated “Today’s listing of NGX Group on the nation’s premier Exchange, NGX, will enable institutional investors globally as well as the Nigerian public to invest in Nigerian Exchange Group Plc.
“With strengthening market dynamics, serving the largest economy in Africa, NGX Group’s listing allows us to expand in key capital market infrastructure verticals and look beyond Nigeria’s borders, as we deliver on our growth plans to become Africa’s leading capital market infrastructure group.”
The Chief Executive Officer, NGX, Temi Popoola, commented on the milestone listing stating, “We are excited to welcome NGX Group to the main board of The Exchange and we congratulate the Board and Management first on a successful demutualisation ann its subsequent listing. This move is particularly exciting, as it will position NGX Group to provide liquidity to members while stimulating the capital market ecosystem to grow at the same pace as the economy.
“Today, we reiterate our commitment to being a trusted partner to NGX Group and other listed companies as we continue to build a platform that allows our listed companies, investors and other stakeholders to maximise value in our market.”
At a maiden press conference on May 19, 20,11 after assumption of duties on April 4, Onyema said he had identified Listing Development; Market Development; Product Development; and Strategic Alliances as four major tactical lines of attack in his repositioning agenda for the Exchange to operate aa s commercial entity (that is as profit-making demutualized exchange).
To this end, the then NSE Council gave its approval to seven committees drawn up by Onyema to oversee affairs of the Exchanges at the time.
The Committees included Audit;
Demutualisation; Finance and General Purpose; Rules and Adjudication; Technology; Risk Management and Disciplinary Committees.
These committees were saddled with the strengthening of the corporate governance structure and reorganisation of the Exchange into four major divisions against the backdrop of regulatory lapses and the collapse of corporate governance that gave room for the r stock market crash earlier in 2008.
Investors lost more than N6 trillion to the market crash in 2008, resulting in deep-seated investor apathy from which the market is yet to recover 13 years after.
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