CAPITAL MARKET REPORTING: SEC approves new guidelines

The Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, has approved new guidelines put forward by the The Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE, for its new sustainability disclosure guidelines.

The NSE, in a statement on Wednesday, said the guidelines were in fulfilment of its desire to champion sustainable capital market practices in Africa, adding that the new guidelines were expected to further deepen the role played by market operators and regulators in leading sustainability policies and regulations.

The statement read in part: “The guidelines primarily provide the value proposition for sustainability in the Nigerian context. It also articulates a step-by-step approach to integrating sustainability into organisations, indicators that should be considered when providing annual disclosure to the Exchange and timelines for such disclosures.

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“The guidelines will become effective on January 1, 2019, and will be mandatory for companies listed on the premium board of the Exchange.

“Accounts to December 31, 2019 must be reported on or before March 30, 2020; accounts to February 28, 2020 must be reported on or before May 30, 2020; accounts to May 31, 2020 must be reported on or before August 29, 2020, and accounts to June 30, 2020 must be reported on or before September 28, 2020.

“We are supporting the global agenda of green and sustainable finance, which is so critical for Africa.

“As the first Exchange to list a sovereign green bond in Africa, our issuance of these guidelines is to further enable investors to ascertain their exposure to Environmental, Social and Governance risks, while providing our issuers with a platform to disclose them along common themes for comparability.”

NSE Chief Executive Officer, Oscar Onyema, also said there was a need to encourage peer exchanges to continue to enhance information disclosure in their markets, saying it would help build trust.

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