Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Exchange Limited, Temi Popoola, has again assured that bourse is fully ready to lend its support to the Federal Government’s economic objectives.
Speaking on the sidelines of the roadshow to BBC in London, he said, the NGX aims to achieve this by mobilizing capital, which “will address government challenges and foster wealth creation for Nigerians.”
According to him, “what we are trying to achieve is to emphasize to investors that Nigeria is open for business and also reinforce that the enormity of the challenges are clear and work has begun to address all the issues. Whether capital inflows or foreign exchange illiquidity, NGX remains a veritable platform for solving these economic challenges,” the CEO added.
According to Popoola, encouraging listings can also address government’s problems including tax revenues, while creating value for shareholders, since listed companies have better governance and are more accountable with tax payment.
This assertion, according to a statement by the echange, comes in the wake of President Bola Tinubu’s ceremonial ringing of the Closing Bell at NASDAQ Exchange in New York last week, marking a significant moment in the NGX International Non-Deal Roadshow supported by Stanbic IBTC, CardinalStone Partners, and Chapel Hill Denham.
Popoola highlighted the privatization initiatives in the telecommunications sector as a compelling illustration of this concept, stressing that the Tinubu administration is presently engaged in tax reforms to boost revenue.
This, he continued, can harness the potential of the capital market to create value and simultaneously achieve its objectives while delivering returns to investors.
As part of ongoing endeavours to attract foreign investors to the Nigerian economy, Wale Edun, the Minister of Finance and the Coordinating Minister of the Economy, ceremonially rang the Opening Bell at the London Stock Exchange on Monday, September 25, 2023 to spotlight the London arm of the Roadshow.
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, foreign investment in Nigeria has experienced a significant decline, mirroring the trend observed in other emerging economies during the same period.
Investdata News recalls that the management of the Federal Government’s Special Purpose Investment and asset custodian Vehicle- Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI), a few weeks ago met with members of the nation’s capital market community to continue discussions towards listing more companies in which government owns stakes.
Managing Director/CEO of MOFI, Dr. Armstrong Takang said MOFI is currently enumerating the national asset register to help government determine what it really owns and how to extract greater value therefrom, noting that 40 corporate assets so far enumerated has been valued at N18tr. This, he stressed, excludes the nation’s various mineral assets, assuring of a target to grow the asset value to N100tr over the next 10 years, in collaboration with the NGX.