By Chinwendu Obienyi
The Association of Securities Dealing Houses of Nigeria (ASHON) has formally appealed to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for a transitional period before full enforcement of the newly enacted Investment and Securities Act (ISA) 2025, warning that immediate implementation could overwhelm market operators still grappling with the law’s sweeping innovations.
The request was made during a high-level workshop which held in Lagos recently, where ASHON Chairman, Sam Onukwue, praised the SEC for modernizing Nigeria’s capital market laws.
However, Onukwue cautioned that brokers and dealers require more time to fully interpret and internalize the Act’s provisions especially those related to digital assets, fintech, and regulatory compliance.
“The ISA 2025 is a landmark legislation, but its innovations, particularly on virtual assets and digital platforms require deeper understanding.
We are urging the Commission to consider a cooling-off period to avoid market disruption and ensure seamless compliance”, he said.
The ISA 2025 is Nigeria’s most ambitious capital market reform in nearly two decades. It introduces new regulatory frameworks for crowdfunding, digital investments, and Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs), and empowers the SEC to criminally prosecute and imprison non-compliant operators, raising the stakes for market conduct.
Market analysts warn that while the reforms are timely, they may impose significant compliance burdens on operators who are not yet adequately equipped to interpret or implement the provisions.
Responding to the concerns, SEC’s Executive Commissioner for Operations, Bola Ajomale, urged operators to invest in legal and compliance expertise, emphasizing the need for professional interpretation of the new rules.
He also encouraged self-reporting by market participants to mitigate potential sanctions. “Operators must make a deliberate effort to upskill and engage professionals. Ignorance of the law will not be an excuse under ISA 2025,” Ajomale said.
The workshop featured technical presentations on “Translating the New ISA 2025 into Practice,” “Legal Perspectives on Digital Assets & Regulatory Frameworks,” and “ISA 2025 and Digital Innovations.”
Also in attendance were ASHON’s 1st Vice Chairman, Sehinde Adenagbe, and 2nd Vice Chairman, Ify Ejezie, along with other top stakeholders in the Nigerian capital market ecosystem.