By Chinwendu Obienyi
The Group Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Exchange Group Plc, Temi Popoola, has outlined its 2023 key initiatives such as attracting new listings, foreign capital inflows, revamping its technology infrastructure, boosting retail investor participation, stating that this is aimed at bridging the country’s financial inclusion gap.
Current measurements of the status of financial inclusion in Nigeria stands at a headline figure of 74 per cent, up from 64 per cent recorded in 2020. However, Popoola, while speaking on the group’s plan for attracting retail investors to the nation’s capital market during a Working Group Committee Meeting of the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) hosted by Deutsche Boerse in Germany recently, emphasized the need to bridge the gap between current market participants and the vast potential represented by the 65 million banking accounts in Nigeria.
He mentioned that the NGX Group’s vision is to onboard millions into the capital market which could potentially foster financial inclusion on an unprecedented scale.
Whilst explaining that attracting listings and foreign capital inflows have been a challenge, Popoola expressed optimism about NGX’s growth and resilience under a more pro-market leadership.
“The high interest rate environment in the United States contributes to the localization of capital in the country, hence starving other riskier markets of the needed capital. After navigating a challenging eight years with the previous administration, we now find ourselves under a more pro-market leadership. This shift positions NGX for renewed growth and resilience in the evolving economic landscape,” he said.
Recognizing the importance of government advocacy historically, Popoola noted that the NGX Group’s strategy involves deeper intentionality to collaboration with government in enhancing listing incentives. He said, “A prime example is the prioritization of listed companies in government procurement processes.
Also, we are working with the regulator and intend to review our listing rules aligning them with markets such as London to attract a more diverse array of businesses to the Exchange.”
He also revealed that the group is focusing on investments in technology infrastructure by deepening data revenue generation and is engaging with market infrastructure stakeholders from Central Counterparties (CCPs) to Central Securities Depositories (CSDs) in meaningful Application Programming Interface (API) conversations.
“This technological advancement is intended to enhance agility within the exchange”, Popoola said.