- Says SEC Committed To Ensuring Transparent, Efficient Exercise
The Director-General of Nigeria’s Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC), Dr. Emomotimi Agama, at the weekend in Lagos restated its commitment to ensuring transparency and efficiency in the nation’s ongoing banking sector recapitalisation.
Agama in a keynote address at the 2024 edition of the annual conference of the Capital Market Correspondents Association of Nigeria (CAMCAN), with theme: “Banks’ Recapitalisation: Bridging the Gap between Investors and Issuers in the Nigerian Capital Market,” said the commission’s “Framework on Banking Sector Recapitalisation (2024–2026),” offers a clear guidance for issuers while safeguarding the interests of investors.
According to him, the fact that most of the banks recorded oversubscription in the ongoing recapitalisation offers reflects strong investor confidence, a momentum the SEC is poised to sustain as it “has intensified efforts to enhance disclosure standards and corporate governance practices.”
Agama, who spoke through John Achile, a Deputy Director and Divisional Head, Legal, and Enforcement, Lagos Zone Office, said recapitalisation is not merely a regulatory requirement, but a strategic imperative to bolster the resilience of Nigeria’s banking sector, and enhance its role as a catalyst for economic growth.
The revised minimum capital thresholds that banks must achieve by 2026, the SEC boss explained, besides ensuring that the country’s banks remain solvent, competitive, and capable of absorbing shocks from macroeconomic headwinds, “are aligned with Nigeria’s economic aspirations of becoming a $1 trillion economy by 2030.
The recapitalisation exercise, he added, aligns with Nigeria’s economic aspirations of becoming a $1 trillion economy by 2030, adding that this year alone, “Nigerian banks raised over ₦1.83tr through rights issues, public offers, and private placements. This achievement reflects both the confidence of investors and the resilience of our market.”
More importantly, he continued, “it positions them to provide critical financing for sectors like agriculture, manufacturing, and infrastructure, which are pivotal to sustainable economic development.
The DG expressed belief that “expanding financial literacy campaigns and collaborating with fintech companies to provide low-entry investment options will democratize access to the capital market.”
The SEC, he assured, remains steadfast in its mission to create an enabling environment for seamless and transparent capital formation, even as its “efforts are anchored on providing issuers with clear guidelines and maintaining open lines of communication with all market stakeholders, reducing bureaucratic bottlenecks through digitalization, ensuring timely review and approval of applications, and enhancing regulatory oversight to protect investors while promoting market integrity.”
He also noted the key role innovation plays in the process of bridging the gap between issuers and investors and ensuring inclusive growth, noting how “digital platforms have enhanced market accessibility, enabling even retail investors in remote areas to participate in recapitalisation exercises.”
The SEC, he assured, is exploring the integration of blockchain technology for secure and transparent transaction processing, a step that will redefine trust in the market.
He listed some of the challenges as addressing market volatility, systemic risks, and limited retail participation, in addition to combating skepticism among investors demanding greater transparency and accountability.
Opportunities arising from the recapitalisation exercise to include thed use of technology to deepen financial inclusion and enhance market liquidity, developing innovative financial products, such as green bonds and sukuk, to attract diverse investor segments.
Above all, he noted that success of the recapitalisation efforts would require partnership among regulators, issuers, and investors, reiterating the commission’s dedication to fostering a resilient, transparent, and inclusive capital market.
