The Association of Securities Dealing Houses of Nigeria (ASHON) has sought an upward review of stockbroking fees from the current ceiling of 1.35%.
Its Chairman, Mr Sam Onukwue, disclosed this in a statement presenting the outcome of the association’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Wednesday in Lagos.
Mr Onukwue said the review was necessary as the fee had been static for years, while the high cost of doing business was affecting the earnings of its members.
He noted that stockbroking fees had remained at a ceiling of 1.35 percent in spite of the increasing inflation rate and other annual regulatory charges paid by ASHON members.
According to him, the suspension of margin trading due to abuse has crippled access to liquidity for many stockbroking firms.
He said this had also made it difficult for stockbrokers to leverage emerging opportunities in the market.
Mr Onukwe revealed that ASHON was working closely with the capital market regulators to address the issue and the need to re-introduce margin trading for mutual benefits of stockbroking firms and the stock market.
“ASHON, after rigorous market research, has written a formal request to SEC for an upward review of the stockbroking fees.
“The Association has made representations to the regulatory authorities for the reintroduction of margin trading.
“The issues at stake are the exclusion of banking stocks in the securities to be traded, as well as the need to update the rules, which was at the behest of the CBN,” he said.
According to the chairman, the association has engaged the Board since the NGX announced its capital raise by way of rights on the status of the two per cent Claims Reserve Shares provided for in the scheme of arrangement of the demutualisation.
Mr Onukwue also explained that the Exchange has committed to a transparent resolution of the issues before the rights offer opens, adding that the association would update its members accordingly.
He mentioned that ASHON, in conjunction with the NGX X-Academy, successfully organised a seminar on “Market Liquidity: Insights, Challenges and Solutions.”
The chairman said that based on the success of the seminar; the association intended to continue to collaborate with key market infrastructure in creating opportunities for its members to upskill their workforce.
“We have strengthened our relationship with the Institute of Capital Market Registrar (ICMR), to create a seamless interface between our members and Registrars.
“We believe this has fostered closer understanding between our members and helped to resolve operational issues between them.
“The association has continued to make progress against all odds. We are determined to survive, and our faith will see us through,” he added.
