Business Briefs
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AS part of its efforts to improve perception of trust in the nation’s capital market, the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE, in conjunction with the Convention on Business Integrity, CBI, on Monday, November 3, launched the corporate governance rating system, CGRS, in Nigeria. The CGRS was designed to rate companies listed on the NSE based on their corporate governance and anti-corruption culture.
Speaking at the event in Lagos, Oscar Onyema, chief executive officer, NSE, said with the CGRS, it was anticipated that there would be an improvement in the overall perception of capital markets and business practices. “It is expected that companies will enjoy tangible business advantages from risk-oriented and/or ethically sensitive business partners and investors. In addition, competitors would be challenged to establish the same level of good governance by setting standards of excellence. Companies would not only set themselves apart from their peers, but also contribute to improving the climate for doing business in Nigeria,” he said.
On his part, Soji Apampa, executive director, CBI, said the pilot phase of the CGRS was done between May 2013 and September 2014. “The rating system is based on a holistic multi-stakeholder approach that uses a diverse information collection and verification approach, which relies not only on self-assessments of companies but also on experiences of stakeholders and experts. It is envisioned to be more transparent on rating procedures and rating governance than other corporate governance indices”, Apampa said.
According to him, the Humboldt-Viadrini School of Governance (Berlin/Germany) was appointed as the international observer to review and support the process of establishing Nigeria’s corporate governance. The CGRS launch attracted more than 500 corporate sector participants joined by government and civil society delegates from Nigeria and across the globe. He said the CGRS framework had been designed to evaluate companies based on the quality of corporate integrity, corporate compliance and understanding of fiduciary responsibilities by directors and corporate reputation among others.
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AMCON Redeems Bonds
THE Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria, AMCON, has completed the scheduled redemption of its series five N976,042,060,000 zero-coupon bonds that was due for October 2014, at par. This puts it ahead of its planned redemption schedule, as all its publicly held bonds have been redeemed before the end of its fourth full year of operations.
AMCON had issued zero coupon bonds with a face value of N5.67 trillion as series I, II, III, IV and V, between December 2010 and December 2011. “The Series five redemption was financed utilising AMCON’s internally generated cash flows and the Banking Sector Resolution Trust Fund (the Sinking Fund),” it said.
The Sinking Fund is funded by annual contributions from Nigerian deposit money banks and the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN. “AMCON would like to note that the collaboration and support of the CBN was critical in ensuring the success of the process.”
Mofoluke Dosumu, executive director, finance and corporate services, AMCON, said the redemption represents a major milestone in the reduction of AMCON’s obligations, as it signifies the retirement of all AMCON bonds held by the public markets. “We will continue to make good progress with respect to our obligations to the Central Bank of Nigeria, presently the sole holder of AMCON’s outstanding debt obligations,” he said.
In December 2013, AMCON had redeemed its issued Series I, II, III and IV Bonds. AMCON has now fully retired a total of N1,874,379,519,000 of all Bonds issued since inception, according to a statement from the corporation.
— Nov. 17, 2014 @ 01:00 GMT
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