Tajudeen said that the National Assembly was working tirelessly to ensure the review of major capital market laws such as the ISA between now and May.
The Investments and Securities Act (“new ISA”) was passed into law in June 2007.
The Act was enacted to repeal the Investments and Securities Act 1999 (“old ISA”) and to establish the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as the apex regulatory authority for the Nigerian capital market and regulation of the market to ensure the protection of investors.
He said that the National Assembly had made appreciable progress in the ISA amendment, noting that both the Senate and House of Representatives had conducted public hearings on its amendment.
Tajudeen said that the bill would soon be presented for third reading in the next couple of weeks.
“I am sure that between now and May, we are going to trunk out a whole gamut of these amendments,’’ he said.
He said that the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) amendment was still on course.
Tajudeen said that the capital market community came up with a team of seasoned lawyers on the laws and areas that needed to be reviewed.
He said that the team had submitted its report to the Senate President, adding that the report would guide its members in the review of capital market laws in line with international best practice.
Tajudeen said that the laws governing the Nigerian capital market needed to be reviewed periodically to achieve the desired economic growth and development.
He said that capital market investment was all about trust, noting that some of the Provisions of ISA 2007 were obsolete and needed to be reviewed to boost investor confidence.
“The ISA is over 11 years, it was passed in 2007, and there are a lot of things to be amended in it.
One of the major reasons why people don’t invest in our market is security. We are not where we used to be, we need to do more.
We are far behind in Africa, we should not just be giant on paper but in reality,’’ Tajudeen said.
On the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) demutualisation, he said that the bill had passed first and second reading in both chambers.
Tajudeen said that the demutualisation bill had been harmonised by both chambers to ensure quick accent.
He said that the demutualisation bill being sponsored by the Federal Government would not stay more than 30 days before accent when it gets to the presidency.
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