CBN’s Sara Alade appointed financial market dealers board chairman

The Deputy Governor, Economic Policy Directorate, Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Sarah Alade, has been nominated the new Chairman of the Board of the Financial Market Dealers Quotation, FMDQ OTC Plc.
Mrs. Alade, whose nomination was disclosed at the FMDQ’s second Annual General Meeting on Thursday in Lagos, would succeed the former Access Bank Managing Director, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, who is retiring on August 1, 2014 as FMDQ Board Chairman.
Mr. Aig-Imoukhuede who spoke at the AGM, urged the management and shareholders of the company to cooperate with the new Chairman in an effort to move the company higher.
He commended the Board members and shareholders for their harmonious working relationship in the past four years and commended the outgoing directors of the board for the achievement recorded by the company over the years.
The FMDQ, Mr. Aig-Imoukhuede said, was well-positioned to empower banks, pension managers and other operators to play major roles in the economic development programme of the Federal Government.
According to him, Nigeria needs a virile debt capital market with world-class listings and quotation standards to support the improved business environment and the entrepreneurial energy of the private sector.
He said the company would continue to champion change in the nation’s economy by promoting the growth of financial markets within the country and beyond.
He, however, commended the Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, CBN and the Debt Management Office, DMO for their support to the company.
FMDQ Managing Director, Bola Onadele, said the company would continue to promote market development through the provision of infrastructure and governance structure in the Nigerian financial market.
Mr. Onadele said the company was committed to the transformation of the nation’s OTC financial market, adding that to complement the achievement in market transparency, the company would focus on market efficiency and liquidity by driving product innovation.
The MD said that FMDQ would thrive on the reintroduction of defunct products such as commercial papers, restructuring of the repo market, activation of securities lending and development of the loan sale market.
He said the company would commence feasibility studies on the derivative market and employ technology regulation and examination franchises to promote FMDQ as a world-class front-line regulator.
“We will continue to forge ahead on our business strategy to organise, regulate, disseminate information and advocate for in the Nigerian financial market,” Onadele said.
The FMDQ OTC platform licensed by the SEC in 2012 to provide oversight on the OTC market in Nigeria, is owned by 25 banks, the CBN, the Finance Dealers Association and the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE.
Besides, the FMDQ OTC is a securities exchange for listing and trading of fixed income products and currency derivatives to offer financial security.
(NAN)