It is a season of bell ringing by Nigerian officials. And this is quite good for the country, as it tries to market itself to the rest of the world. Nigeria is telling everyone who cares to know that this country, Africa’s biggest economy, with the largest concentration of black people on the surface of the earth, is the investment destination of the moment.
President Bola Tinubu rang the Closing Bell on National Association of Securities Dealers Automatic Quotation System (NASDAQ) on September 20, 2023, during his trip to the UN General Assembly 78th session in New York. It was a significant event given that Nasdaq is the second-most capitalised stock exchange in the world, next to the NY Stock Exchange.
Five days later, Mr. Wale Edun, the Minister of Finance and the Coordinating Minister of the Economy, also had the privilege of ringing the Opening Bell at the London Stock Exchange on Monday, September 25, 2023.
The visit by Edun and his entourage to the LSE was part of their itinerary during the Nigerian Exchange’s International Non-Deal Roadshow to showcase Nigeria’s investment potential to the global community.
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The medium for announcing both the commencement and ending of trading on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, now Nigeria Exchange, has been altered over time. First, it was just the ringing of the bell. Then the gong was added. Now this has been rebranded: the gong has swallowed the bell.
“To celebrate our rich African culture, the Nigerian Stock Exchange will mark the start of each day’s trading session with the opening gong being sounded at 9:30 a.m. WAT. At 2:30 p.m. the closing symbolic gong will be sounded as the trading for the day stops,” the bourse said in a statement announcing the rebranding in 2014.
The law establishing the Exchange provides that the bell should be rung by the President of the Council of the Exchange. However, since the president is not always present on the floor during trading, he delegates this function to other officials to perform on his behalf. Most of the time, the officer in charge of trading rang the bell to bring trading to a close each day.
The NSE later introduced the gong as a complement to the bell. So, in addition to ringing the bell, the officer closing the market would beat the gong also. As the gong gives its sonorous sound, the brokers in unison yell: Igweeee! Igweeee!
“Today, the Gong resides on the podium of the NSE Trading Floor and is struck with a wooden gavel by dignitaries or special guests during a Bell bell-ringing ceremony,” NSE explained. The privilege of beating the gong is given to special visitors to the Exchange, such as the chairman or chief executive of a listed company that comes to present its operating results or Facts Behind the Figures, during which the company gives details of the factors that impacted its result in the immediate past period, and also unfolds its plans for the periods ahead.
Others include heads of associations, groups related to the bourse, as well as diplomats, ministers, state governors, etc. On such an occasion, the leader of the company or group is allowed to ring the bell and beat the gong to bring trading formally to a close.
Visits to the hallowed chambers of Stock Exchanges are not flippant excursions for sightseeing by people who are bored with their routines. Visits that offer dignitaries opportunities to ring Opening or Closing Bells are given to persons such as presidents, top government officials, and Chief Executives of companies. Such personalities go there because they have something to say, not just because they want to say something.
They go there with stories about what they are doing that should be of interest to investors. Such a visit is a marketing opportunity, where the CEO or whoever comes visiting marshals out the reasons for which discerning investors should consider putting their funds into the country or company, as the case may be.
Visitors who are allowed to ring stock exchanges’ bells are telling investors and fund managers that they and the entities they represent have good news for them. It is a time to market investment opportunities that should be of interest to discerning investors. And, since investment matters are not issues for polemics, it is not a time for generalities. It is a time for specifics that savvy investors or their brokers or advisers can evaluate and compare with available alternatives elsewhere. It is about the security of investments, returns, and risks prevalent in one country being juxtaposed against others with similar or even better characteristics.
It is in this context that we look at President Tinubu’s comments when he rang the Bell at Nasdaq: “It is not about if Nigeria is open for business, it is about who wants to do business with Nigeria. the administration has moved the exchange rate regime to a managed float and removed fuel subsidies. I call on you to come and invest in Nigeria.”
Investors sitting in New York, London, or Toronto will respond to this invitation according to their assessment of the Nigerian investment climate, which comprises the political, economic, social, and security status of the country.
Also speaking in London was the CEO of Nigerian Exchange Limited, Mr. Temi Popoola, who declared that the Exchange was ready to support the Federal Government’s investment objectives.
In his speech, Popoola highlighted the privatization initiatives in the Nigerian telecommunications sector as a compelling illustration of this concept. He also referred to the current reforms embarked on by the current administration, including tax reforms aimed at boosting revenue. According to him, these reforms can harness the potential of the capital market to create value and simultaneously achieve its objectives while delivering returns to investors.
“What we are trying to achieve is to emphasise to investors that Nigeria is open for business and also reinforce that the enormity of the challenges is clear and work has begun to address all the issues. Whether capital inflows or foreign exchange illiquidity, NGX remains a veritable platform for solving these economic challenges,” Popoola said.
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