Flour Mills of Nigeria (FMN) Plc and Primero BRT Securitization SPV Plc yesterday listed three bonds valued at N36.5 billion on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) as the Exchange continued to uphold its commitment to support companies to raise funds in the face of the Coronavirus pandemic.
Flour Mills of Nigeria listed its N12.5 billion three-years 10 per cent series three, tranche A, fixed rate senior unsecured bond due 2023 and N7.5 billion five-year 11.10 per cent series three, tranche B, fixed rate senior unsecured bond due 2025.
Group Managing Director, Flour Mills of Nigeria (FMN) Plc, Mr. Peter Gbededo expressed excitement over the listing of the bond on the NSE.
“We are delighted to return to the capital market with such a successful outing, especially with the level of interest shown by investors. The response from the market vindicates our decision to have taken this additional step to diversify our financing options beyond short-term commercial bank debt,” Gbedebo said.
He said the company was also excited about the role NSE is playing in deepening secondary market liquidity thus aligning the Nigerian market with international best practices, adding that Flour Mills looks forward to enjoying the benefits of these efforts in its short and long-term instruments.
Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) Mr. Oscar Onyema, commended the management of Flour Mills Nigeria and Primero for the success of the issues.
He reiterated the commitment of the Exchange to supporting its stakeholders.
“As an Exchange, we are committed to ensuring that our operations and trading activities continue seamlessly throughout this period. We have put in place the requisite measures to guarantee that our staff are able to provide requisite support, our stakeholders are able to conduct business digitally, and that all relevant information continues to flow into the market to spur capital market activity during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Onyema said.
According to him, since the activation of its business continuity plan in response to COVID-19 on Wednesday, March 25, 2020, the Exchange has transitioned to digital operations with its employees working remotely and dealing member firms trading remotely.
He pointed out that the Exchange has had no disruptions to its operations since the activation of the slow down efforts by state and federal governments to flatten the COVID19 curve.
