President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday rang the closing bell at NASDAQ in New York, United States as part of proceedings at the Executive Business Dialogue organised by the United States Chamber of Commerce, Nigerian Exchange Group Plc and Nigerian Investment Promotion Council.
The business dialogue is part of events in the Non-Deal Roadshow planned by the NGX Group to support the new administration’s efforts in re-igniting the interest of foreign investors in the Nigerian economy.
In a statement it issued about the event, the NGX said, “The Non-Deal Roadshow would help to foster dialogue, strengthen economic ties, and enhance collaboration. The Roadshow is part of the Group’s drive to support FG’s agenda to elicit the interest of foreign investors in the Nigerian economy. The goal is to display the robustness of the capital market and leverage the pace of reforms by the new administration of President Tinubu; enabling foreign investors recognise the value created by the changing landscape.”
In its Domestic & Foreign Portfolio Investment Report for July 2023, NGX said that total foreign transactions decreased by 11.37 per cent from N45.74bn to N40.54bn between June 2023 and July 2023. However, the foreign inflow for July dropped by 58.41 per cent to N9.45bn from N22.72bn in the preceding month.
NGX Group said that it is also looking to attract more listings by engaging select companies and spotlighting them in front of international investors. It will spotlight NGX and some blue-chip market operators.
Other events scheduled between September 20 and 25 by NGX Group include the Non-Deal Roadshow in New York and London organised in collaboration with Debt Management Office to be headlined by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun; and a tech event themed Invest in Africa’s Future planned with the Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, and Future Africa. It will be headlined by Dr Bosun Tijani, Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy.
The tech event will among other objectives explore how the newly created NGX Technology Board can support capital formation in the technology industry and provide an opportunity for US institutional investors interested in investing in Africa, to meet with prominent African venture capital firms and tech founders.
Some of the sponsors of the roadshow include Stanbic IBTC Capital, CardinalStone Partners, and Chapel Hill Denham. Some private companies like Lagos Free Zone Company, Niger Delta Exploration and Production Flutterwave and VFD Group will also be participating.
In a notice on its side about the event, NASDAQ said that the bell-ringing ceremony with President Tinubu symbolises the significance of the economic ties between the United States and Nigeria.
NASDAQ is the most active stock trading venue in the US by volume, and ranked second on the list of stock exchanges by market capitalisation of shares traded, behind the New York Stock Exchange.
