By Providence Obuh & Favour Agbi

The Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE, Mr. Oscar Onyema said the Nigerian Capital market is undergoing a transformation process that will strategically position it to play a major role in the African continent, especially in attracting investment from investors, locally and globally.

Onyema, who disclosed this during the Second Annual Nigerian Capital Markets Workshop hosted by J.P. Morgan, Thomson Reuters, the London Stock Exchange and the Nigerian Stock Exchange in Lagos, said the Nigerian capital market is undergoing a metamorphosis, that will make it more relevant in the scheme of things in the continent.

“While change is an inevitable effect of growth, we must collaborate to do it proactively and strategically in order to become the gateway to African markets,” he said.

Onyema said he has taken a number of steps recently to restore local as well as foreign investors’ confidence in the market and is currently working on introducing new products in the market.

He expressed optimism that when the economic and market environment steadies, companies from sectors such as power, upstream oil and gas, telecom and agriculture would choose the equity route to raising capital, thereby increasing the breadth of the NSE.

Also speaking, Ms. Arunma Oteh, Director General of the Securities and Exchanges Commission, SEC, outlined the recent steps to strengthen the equity market, while stating that she has been encouraged by the fact that both corporate as well as government and local bodies have been able to tap the country’s bond markets.

Oteh commend the completion of the bank restructuring exercise, saying that Nigeria’s largest services sector has been de-risked to a great extent and has been instrumental in improving investor sentiment on Nigeria

In his address, Tosin Adewuyi, Senior Country Officer, Nigeria, at J.P. Morgan, said the company’s commitment to the development of the Nigerian capital market, especially with its long standing presence in Nigeria and positive view of the continued development of the Nigerian capital markets.

Also speaking, Mr. Ibukun Adebayo said, “Energy and electricity sector reform will go a long way in ensuring that Nigeria becomes the African economic powerhouse of the future.   As the world’s largest centre of international equity capital and as the natural home of energy, infrastructure & resources companies, the London Stock Exchange is best placed among all global exchanges to finance Nigerian companies in these sectors.”