Stock brokers during a trading session

Goddy Egene

The Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS) and Association  of Stockbroking Houses of Nigeria (ASHON) -  the two  umbrella bodies of  stockbrokers-  have called for the speedy resolution of capital market-related  cases so as to send positive signals about the market  and also encourage  more patronage of the market.

CIS is the professional body of stockbrokers while ASHON is the trade group of all dealing members (stockbroking houses) of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

Speaking to the THISDAY last Monday, President of CIS, Mr. Ariyo Olushekun and Chairman of ASHON, Mr. Emeka Madubuike, said that while the two bodies have put in place  measures to check the excesses of members and restore investor confidence in the market, the delay in resolving old cases brought against some of their members have been sending  wrong signals about the current state of the market.

According to Olushekun, the CIS has internal machinery that takes care of cases brought against its members, noting that such are dealt with without delay.

“This machinery has brought some level of confidence to investors who   are always  sure of getting justice whenever they come to the Institute.  However, there are cases which are outside control of  CIS that have been  seen as new cases. I wonder why a case that was reported in 2008 and 2009 would be still pending till now. Such delays are not healthy for the market,” he said.

Speaking in the same vein, Madubuike, said that the faster cases are dispensed with, the better for the market.
“We know that the Investments and Securities Tribunal (IST) was set up by law to specifically resolve cases that are related to investments in the capital market.  And this duty should be carried out as expected,” he said.

The leading brokers said that all stakeholders in the market should work together as part of the  continued efforts aimed at bringing the market to full recovery.

Meanwhile, the CIS and ASHON bosses have advised Nigerian  retail investors not to stay away from the market while foreign investors are  reaping fortunes from the market.

“Domestic investors who have been staying away from the market should return because the market has begun to recover. However, they should invest based on professional advice. Investors should not just invest for investing stake the way most of them did  in 2007. They should invest based on professional advice,” he said.

On his part, Madubuike said investors should look properly at companies’ performances before investing in them.
“Look at the financial trends and the performance of the companies. If you do not have the time to do that employ the services  investment advisers, portfolio managers or better still,  invest through collective investment schemes that are management by professionals who are also regulated,” he said