The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has said the Collective Investment Schemes (CIS) funds have risen from about N1.1 trillion at the beginning of 2020 to about N2.1 trillion at the end of October 2023.

The Director-General of SEC, Lamido Yuguda, made this known at a training for journalists, Organised By the Nigerian Capital Market Institute (NCMI) in Lagos.

The training is to further boost the knowledge of the market and report it accurately and professionally.

Lamido hinted that to manage risk and entrench trust in Collective Investment Schemes (CIS), the Commission mandated that all CIS funds be held in custody.

This, he said, had helped the growth of these funds from about N1.1 trillion at the beginning of 2020 to about N2.1 trillion at the end of October 2023.

According to him, “we continue to encourage investors, especially those on the retail end, to approach the market through these CIS funds, as they provide investors with the opportunity to have their investments managed by knowledgeable investment professionals.”

Speaking on the perennial problem of unclaimed dividends, Lamido said that the Capital Market Committee, under the leadership of the Commission, had embarked on the creation of a new e-dividend portal, which is expected to become operational on November 30, 2023.

He explained that when it comes into operation, the portal would simplify the process of mandating accounts for e-dividend, adding that this would improve efficiency and ultimately lead to a significant fall in unclaimed dividends.

The SEC Director General stated that as part of its efforts to ensure that new dividends do not become unclaimed, the Commission was presently supporting work on an identity management system that will ensure that investors and market participants are properly identified to forestall the problems that led to accumulation of unclaimed dividends.

Lamido explained that in line with the Commission’s developmental role, the zonal offices had continued to conduct investor clinics, adding that these clinics provided solutions to investors dealing with issues relating to their investments in the capital market.

The clinics, he said, had not only also served as good platforms, they also serve as good platforms for investor education and awareness but they also support the financial inclusion efforts of the Commission.

The SEC boss informed that over the past four years, the Commission had worked hard to expand and deepen the market through the creation of new products and the expansion of existing ones and that two Central CounterParties (CCPs) were registered and over 30 derivatives contracts approved to kick-start derivatives trading in Nigeria.

Over the period, the Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) market has grown from nothing to about from about N18 billion today. On the non-interest capital markets segment, Lamido said, is growing, and “we continue to witness successful Sukuk issuances. The green and blue bond markets are also beginning to see some activity.”

On the commodities market, Lamido said that it was also growing in leaps and bounds, informing that the Commission has registered five commodities exchanges and supported their growth.
It also supported the ongoing revamp of the Nigerian Commodities Exchange (NCX) by the Central Bank of Nigeria.

“Today we have three strong multi-product exchanges driving the growth of our market. This is good, as healthy competition spurs innovation and growth. The activities of these exchanges have helped us make marked advances in product and market development.

“I am happy to tell you that the Nigerian stock market has reached a new all-time high, with the NGX All-share Index crossing the 70,000-point mark on November 1, 2023. This represents a more than 30 per cent increase this year. The consistent growth of the market is testament to the hard work put in by the entire market, led by the Commission,” he said.

The SEC DG said that over the past four years, the Commission had tens of issuances of equities and bonds, stressing that this year, SEC has a total of 19 new issuances valued at N338.39 billion and that the Commission has also reviewed and approved 11 mergers and acquisitions this year.

Speaking on its investor protection mandate, Lamido told journalists that the Commission had also continued its efforts to educate shareholders and the public about capital market operations through media channels.

He stated that at the weekly enlightenment programmes, discussions are focused primarily on providing an overview of the Nigerian capital market and highlighting the consequences of engaging with ponzi scheme operators.

The Commission, he hinted, had also issued several warnings about Ponzi schemes and digital assets not registered with the Commission.

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