By Peter Egwuatu & Nkiruka Nnorom

LAGOS — The Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, has given the 12 capital market operators, CMOs, that failed to meet up with its recapitalisation deadline last year, up till December 31 to recapitalise.

Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Mr. Mounir Gwarzo, stated this at the post- Capital Market Committee, CMC, press briefing in Lagos ,yesterday.

He explained that operators who were disqualified for non-compliance or inability to substantiate claims of compliance by the audit firms would be allowed to come back to the market once they showed evidence of compliance within the stipulated period.

He, however, stressed that the commission would not extend another grace period to any operator who failed to meet the new date, saying their licenses would be withdrawn at the expiration of the deadline.

He said: “We have given a grace of about 15 months from the initial deadline of September 30, 2015 to December 31, 2016. Operators who did not meet the requirement within this period will have their operating license cancelled.”

He further stated that the commission also extended the deadline for free e-dividend registration by 150 days and would bear the cost of registration on behalf of investors  who registered within the 150 days grace period.

He said subsequent registration at the end of the deadline would attract a fee of N100.

He noted that the e-dividend management system, which was launched last year by the commission in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Nigeria Interbank Settlement System (NIBSS) to enable investors have direct access to their dividends, had enjoyed high level of compliance from the investing public.