Why we are Floating a New Institute – Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers
The Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS), yesterday, defended the floating of Chartered Institute of Securities and Investment Management, CISIM, to replace the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers, CIS in line with global structure.
The President of CIS, Mr Olatunde Amolegbe in a statement said: “The CISIM’s Bill is currently with the National Assembly and will replace the CIS Act 105 of 1992 when passed into law. Investment and Securities Act, ISA provides for individual operators that deal in securities to be certified by the CIS and that is why we are moving for the replacement”.
Meanwhile, the CIS in collaboration with three other professional bodies have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish CISIM to bring securities dealers and investment managers in Nigeria under one umbrella. At the last count, apart from the CIS, the three other professional bodies that signed the historic MoU are the Association of Investment Advisers and Portfolio Managers (AIPM) , The Fund Managers Association of Nigeria (FMAN), Association of Issuing Houses of Nigeria (AIHN) with ASHON’s Chairman, Chief Onyenwechukwu Ezeagu as an observer.
Amolegbe said: “The Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers Act 105 of 1992, which established the CIS provides that individual operators that deal in securities, including Stocks, Treasury Bills, Bonds, Commodities etc shall be trained and certified by the Institute. At the moment, certain gaps in the Act are exploited by some individuals to deal in securities without any form of certification and requisite training. Therefore, the CISIM Bill when passed into law, will bring capital market professionalsunder a common objective without encroaching on one another’s business, make regulation easier, and enhance global competitiveness”.
Commenting further on the MoU, the President, CIS, the CIS President said; “The proposed Bill was nothing unusual, commended the professional bodies that signed the MOU for sincerity and unity of purpose”.
Amolegbe explained that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), the apex regulator and Self-Regulatory Organization (SRO) respectively, regulate Stockbrokers but the ISA provides for individual operators that deal in securities to be certified by the Institute while their organizations are regulated by SEC and The NSE and these are two different roles.
In his response, President, AIPM, Prince Abimbola Olashore said: “We share common goals and there is a need for standardization to enhance our advocacy. The Association of Investment Advisers and Portfolio Managers (AIPM) subscribes to the ideals of the proposed Chartered Institute of Securities and Investment Management (CISIM) in Nigeria”.
