SEC ‘won’t shift’ recapitalisation deadline

Mounir Gwarzo, acting director-general of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), on Thursday revealed that the September 30 deadline for new minimum capital requirement for capital market operators would not be extended.

“The deadline has come to stay, the deadline is still September and progress is being made,” he said, adding that the capital requirement would be implemented vigorously.

“The level of compliance has gone up but we are determined to keep to that September 30. No shaking, no going back. There is no going back and we are happy the way we are receiving responses from all the capital market operators.”

On December 19, 2013, SEC issued a new capital requirement for capital market operators with December 31, 2014 as deadline for operators to ensure recapitalisation.

However, the commission extended the recapitalisation deadline to September 30, 2015 in response to numerous representation and complaints from the capital market operators.

Brokers currently operating with capital base of N40 million will now be required to have N200 million, representing an increase of 400 per cent.

The minimum capital base for dealers increased by 233 per cent from N30 million to N100 million.

Also, issuing houses, which facilitate new issues in the primary market, will now be required to have minimum capital base of N200 million as against the current capital requirement of N150 million.

The capital requirement for underwriter also doubled from N100 million to N200 million.

A Registrar will now have a minimum capital base of N150 million as against the current requirement of N50 million.

While the minimum capital base for corporate investment adviser remained unchanged at N5 million, individual investment advisers will have to increase their capital by 300 per cent from N500,000 to N2 million.