The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has granted NASD Plc permission to start implementing its Digital Securities Platform (DSP) as part of the Regulatory Incubation (RI) initiative.
NASD Plc is an Over-the-Counter (OTC) securities exchange that facilitates trading of all securities of unquoted companies, primarily in Nigeria.
The Regulatory Incubation (RI) programme is designed by the SEC to address the needs of new business models and processes that require regulatory authorisation to continue carrying out full or ancillary technology-driven capital market activities.
According to a statement from NASD and its group of partners, Blockstation Inc. USA; T.K. Tech Limited, Nigeria; and Sophus Consulting Limited, Nigeria, the SEC approval is a positive development for the Nigerian capital market ecosystem and marks the conclusion of development work that spanned roughly two years.
In addition to democratizing access to the capital market by lowering the barrier to both issuing and investing in securities, it was claimed that the digital securities platform would offer an end-to-end solution for the issuance, trading, and settlement of digital assets. It would do this by utilizing blockchain technology to increase accessibility and reduce cost.
Mr. Eguarekhide Longe, Managing Director, NASD Plc, stated, “We are truly excited at NASD to be working with the right partners such as Tk Tech Africa, Blockstation Inc, and Sophus Consulting to introduce to the Nigerian capital market this opportunity to adopt innovation through digital securities trading of real assets that are securitized by tokens, presenting the capacity to deploy trading solutions to varied asset classes, revolutionize the trade settle”.
Remember that the NASD successfully tested the NASD-DSP with the participation of a number of institutions, including Stanbic IBTC Custodian, Stanbic IBTC Bank, and a number of brokers, including Afrinvest Securities Limited, Greenwich Securities Limited, and Anchoria Investment & Securities Limited.
