Nigerian Banks and Corporations Face N125 Million in Fines for Reporting Delays

Investors King reports that Nigeria’s financial sector is buzzing with news of fines levied on eight banks and 18 publicly listed companies.

These fines, totaling N125 million, come as a consequence of these entities’ failure to file their audited financial statements for the year 2022 and their quarterly reports for the first half of 2023, as mandated by the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX).

Among the banks facing penalties are Unity Bank, FBN Holdings, Access Holdings, Fidelity Bank, Jaiz Bank, Wema Bank, Guaranty Trust Holdings Plc, and Ecobank Transnational Incorporated.

In addition to the banks, various publicly traded companies, including John Holt, PZ Cussons, Notore Chemical, Glaxo SmithKline Consumer Nigeria, Industrial Medical and Gases Nigeria, and Juli Plc, have also been affected by these sanctions.

The NGX has stringent post-listing rules that demand quoted companies to furnish their audited results within 90 calendar days, or three months, following the conclusion of the financial year. These rules further require these companies to submit interim reports no later than 30 calendar days after the end of the respective period.

Our analysis of NGX’s latest X-Compliance Report reveals that FBN Holdings faced fines due to delays in submitting its 2022 financial results and its Q1 2023 report. For these infractions, the lender incurred fines of N6.3 million and N3.3 million, respectively.

Unity Bank, on the other hand, paid N6.4 million for failing to submit its 2022 results promptly and an additional N3.4 million for the delay in providing its interim reports for Q1, 2023.

Other fines include Fidelity Bank, GTCO, and Wema Bank paying N2.7 million, N1.4 million, and N1.9 million, respectively. Access Holdings was fined N2 million, while Jaiz Bank, Ecobank, and John Holt faced penalties of N600,000, N3.2 million, and N3.2 million, respectively.

PZ Cussons incurred a fine of N4.8 million, Notore Chemical paid N500,000, and GSK, which recently announced its withdrawal from the Nigerian market, faced a N1.3 million fine for failing to promptly file its 2022 financial results.

Other companies sanctioned for tardy submission of their 2022 audited accounts include Industrial Medical and Gases Nigeria (N1.2 million), Juli Plc (N120,000), and NPF Microfinance Bank (N1.8 million).

Also, Daar Communications was slapped with a N1.7 million fine, Champion Breweries and Abbey Mortgage Bank Plc were penalized N1.6 million and N1.4 million, respectively. Regency Alliance Insurance and Thomas Wyatt Nigeria also incurred fines of N1.4 million and N4.9 million, respectively, for the same offense.

The NGX also imposed significant fines on Presco Plc (N24.8 million), Ardova (N18.6 million), and Universal Insurance Plc (N12.4 million) for violating filing regulations. Conoil was fined N7.9 million for failing to meet the stipulated reporting deadline, while Caverton Offshore Support Group paid N5.7 million as a penalty for the same offense.

Notably, telecommunications services firm Briclinks Africa Plc was also fined N590,000 during this period.

David Adonri, Vice-chairman of Highcap Securities, emphasized the importance of these fines in upholding the market’s integrity.

He noted that many of these penalties stem from corporate disclosure issues and highlighted that the capital market relies on timely and accurate information from listed companies.

Adonri added that companies anticipating difficulties in meeting their disclosure obligations can formally request additional time from the exchange.