The Managing Director/CEO of NASD OTC, the platform for the trading of unlisted securities, Mr. Bola Ajomale, has said efforts were on to ensure that Pension Administrators (PFAs) begin to invest in securities in the market.
Ajomale disclosed this at a meeting with the Association of Securities Dealing Houses of Nigeria (ASHON), to discuss strategic partnership in the area of trading in securities and market development.
According to him, NASD OTC has started engaging PFAs so that they could start trading in the market from 2020.
“We are working on creating an index in conjunction with S&P on five top players in the market and on this index a fund can be created. Also, in recognition of the large size of fixed income market and its importance, the NASD is set to introduce a new commercial paper trading initiative which is currently going through the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for approval. ASHON’s support is essential to its success in the market,” he said.
He said emphasis should be on growth in the business, explaining that the growth is in finding companies and bringing them to the market.
“There is a new portal being introduced which has the capacity to take care of this new line of thought and it is expected to come on stream soon. The portal will be introduced formally to ASHON members. It was advised that we should encourage the members of ASHON to look at other markets like FMDQ Securities Exchange since the wealth the traders we make will cascade to the NASD,” Ajomale said.
According to the Chairman of ASHON, Chief Onyenwechukwu Ezeagu, the association was engaging with all exchanges and trade points in Nigeria in order to expand the scope of operations and the income stream of her members.
“We are extending this new initiative to include other markets outside Nigeria as evident in our participation in the formation of the African Stockbrokers and Securities Dealers Association (ASSDA) which is part of the African Linkage Project.
We want to formally engage the management of NASD on how we can improve and streamline our relationship through regular discussion with the utmost aim of improving the market. The 4th Industrial Revelation is powered by Fintech and there is a need for us to be ready for its disruptive tendencies,” he said.
