NSE Commemorates FBNQuest Merchant Bank’s N5bn Bond Listing with Digital Closing Gong

The Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE, has once again made good on its promise to continue to provide stakeholders with access to capital even in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. This effort was evidenced by the successful listing of FBNQuest Merchant Bank’s N5 billion three-year 10.50 per cent bond on the NSE which was commemorated with a digital closing gong ceremony on Friday, 15 May 2020.

Commenting on the listing, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), NSE, Mr. Oscar Onyema, said, “We welcome FBNQuest Merchant Bank’s debut listing of its N5 billion Series 1 Bond on the Exchange, as we continue to support the Bank in meeting its capital raising needs and business objectives. We also commend all the parties to the transaction. At the NSE, we are committed to giving issuers and investors a platform to access right-sized capital even in the toughest of times as well as providing opportunities for secondary market trading activities across multiple asset classes – equities, bonds, ETFs. Today, FBNQuest Merchant Bank is a beneficiary of this and we are pleased to welcome them.”

Speaking on the transaction, Managing Director/CEO, Mr. Kayode Akinkugbe stated, “We are pleased to announce the listing of the FBNQuest MB Funding SPV PLC Bond on The Nigerian Stock Exchange. This is the debut bond issued by the organisation, and the success recorded attests to the degree of confidence investors have in the business. As a full-service investment bank and asset manager, we advised on the bond issuance and structure, and also leveraged our extensive distribution capability to ensure the success of the transaction.”

FBNQuest Merchant Bank will be the second organization honoured with a digital closing gong following the maiden edition earlier held in April with Sterling Bank. The NSE digital closing gong ceremony attests to the resilience of the NSE’s technology platforms which have supported Dealing Members in trading remotely without incident via electronic platforms, i.e., FIX Protocol, X-NET, and the newly implemented Virtual Private Network (VPN).

It should also be recalled that over the past weeks, NSE has listed Flour Mills’N12,5 billion three-year and N7.5 billion five-year Bonds; Primero BRT Securitisation SPV Plc Bond worth N16.5 billion; and several Government Bonds worth over N160 billion.