The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said it is planning to grow non-interest capital market products to 25 per cent of the overall market capitalisation.
According to the Director-General, Mr Mounir Gwarzo said the regulatory body was also considering modalities for establishment of a Sharia Advisory Council as a body of experts to advise on non-interest product applications.
Represented by Executive Commissioner, Corporate Services at SEC, Zakawanu Garuba, the DG stated this in Abuja during a meeting with the Lord Mayor of London, Alderman Alan Yarrow.
He said: “Our goal is to boost non-interest capital market product innovation so that the segment can be at least a quarter (25 per cent) of the overall market capitalisation.”
The SEC he said wants “to build a strong regulatory regime for non-interest products, encourage stakeholders in the non-interest capital market and ensure the emergence of Nigeria as a prominent non-interest capital market hub both at the regional level and globally.”
To boost liquidity of non-interest products, he said SEC is “working with a committee to support the FMDQ platform to enable secondary market trading of the products. We are also engaging the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to obtain liquidity status for non-interest products (especially the sukuk).”
All these efforts, he noted are hinged on the fact that “Nigeria has more than 80 million Muslims compared to Malaysia’s total population of 30 million. In addition, Nigeria has a larger economy than Malaysia’s, being the largest economy in Africa.”