A total of eight banks and 18 other publicly listed companies have been penalized with fines amounting to N125 million for their failure to submit their audited financial statements for the year 2022 and quarterly reports for the first half of 2023 as mandated by the Nigerian Exchange.
The financial institutions affected by these sanctions include Unity Bank, FBN Holdings, Access Holdings, Fidelity Bank, Jaiz Bank, Wema Bank, Guaranty Trust Holdings Plc, and Ecobank Transnational Incorporated.
Similarly, notable companies like John Holt, PZ Cussons, Notore Chemical, Glaxo SmithKline Consumer Nigeria, Industrial Medical and Gases Nigeria, and Juli Plc have also faced penalties due to non-compliance.
The Nigerian Exchange’s post-listing rules stipulate that quoted companies are required to submit their audited results within 90 calendar days (three months) after the close of the relevant period. Additionally, interim reports must be submitted within 30 calendar days after the period ends.
According to the most recent X – Compliance Report issued by the regulatory arm of the Nigerian Exchange, FBN Holdings incurred fines for delaying the submission of its 2022 financial results and its Q1 2023 report. The bank paid N6.3 million for the former violation and N3.3 million for the latter.
Unity Bank paid N6.4 million for its delay in submitting the 2022 results and an additional N3.4 million for not filing its Q1 2023 interim reports on time.
Other penalties included fines of N2.7 million, N1.4 million, and N1.9 million for Fidelity Bank, GTCO, and Wema Bank, respectively.
Access Holdings was fined N2 million, while Jaiz Bank, Ecobank, and John Holt were penalized with amounts of N600,000, N3.2 million, and N3.2 million, respectively.
PZ Cussons received a fine of N4.8 million, Notore Chemical paid N500,000, and GSK, which had announced the closure of its Nigerian operations, was also fined N1.3 million for the late filing of its 2022 financial results.
Other companies facing penalties for delayed filing of their 2022 audited accounts include Industrial Medical and Gases Nigeria (N1.2 million), Juli Plc (N120,000), and NPF Microfinance Bank (N1.8 million).
Daar Communications was fined N1.7 million, Champion Breweries and Abbey Mortgage Bank Plc were each penalized N1.6 million and N1.4 million, respectively.
Regency Alliance Insurance and Thomas Wyatt Nigeria also faced fines of N1.4 million and N4.9 million, respectively, for the same violation.
Presco Plc was fined N24.8 million, Ardova paid N18.6 million, and Universal Insurance Plc was penalized with N12.4 million for violating filing regulations.
Conoil faced a penalty of N7.9 million for failing to submit its results within the stipulated period, and Caverton Offshore Support Group paid N5.7 million for the same offense.
Additionally, telecommunications services firm Briclinks Africa Plc was fined N590,000 during this period.
David Adonri, Vice-chairman of Highcap Securities, emphasized the importance of these fines in upholding the integrity of the market.
Many of these penalties are related to corporate disclosures.
The capital market heavily relies on accurate information, and listed companies are obligated to disclose specific details within appropriate timeframes.
In cases where a company anticipates difficulty in meeting these requirements, they can request an extension from the exchange.
