Stanbic IBTC Stockbrokers, NSE organise forum on retail bond market

Strategies on harnessing the huge benefits from retail bonds were the thrust of a workshop organised by Stanbic IBTC Stockbrokers Limited, in collaboration with the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

Apart from NSE, the event which held in Lagos recently, attracted key players in the capital market, including stockbrokers, dealers, investors, economic analysts and the Central Securities Clearing System Plc (CSCS).

Oladele Sotubo, CEO, Stanbic IBTC Stockbrokers Limited, said the positioning and transformation of Nigeria’s bond market into a vibrant investment window requires the collaboration of all stakeholders.

He reiterated the organisation’s commitment to facilitating stability and growth of the Nigerian capital market, via confidence-building initiatives and leveraging investment opportunities in the market.

“A major objective in organising this workshop is to enlighten investors and stakeholders on the workings of the bond market and the numerous benefits in investing in retail bonds in particular.

“We believe the forum will help in boosting retail investors’ participation in both the primary and secondary markets, and ultimately, help to deepen Nigeria’s bond market,” he said.

As part of the Standard Bank Group, Africa’s biggest banking conglomerate with a focus on emerging markets, the focus of these sessions is such that they will provide useful insight on how to diversify investment portfolios into different asset classes, he said. The attractive investment opportunities that exist in each market will also be highlighted, he added.

Dipo Omotoso, the head of product management at the Nigerian Stock Exchange, who represented the Chief Executive Officer of the Exchange, highlighted some of the measures that have been taken to strengthen the capital market, which includes its derivatives.

He described the investment opportunities in the capital market and Nigeria’s economy as huge, and urged investors to become more active in the retail bonds segment.

Sotubo said as Nigeria’s largest stockbroking firm in both volume and value of total transactions, and stockbroker to the Federal Government, Stanbic IBTC Stockbrokers Ltd will continuously put in the public domain initiatives and strategies that could help all stakeholders, especially investors, to be better informed about developments in the capital market, which will help them in making the right decisions. In pursuit of this goal, Sotubo said Stanbic IBTC Stockbrokers Ltd will organise more similar training workshops.

Stanbic IBTC Stockbrokers Limited is a member of the Stanbic IBTC Group, a full service financial services group with a clear focus on three main business pillars – Corporate and Investment Banking, Personal and Business Banking and Wealth Management. Standard Bank Group, to which Stanbic IBTC Holdings belongs, is rooted in Africa with operations in 20 countries in the continent and other emerging markets.