Authorities at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited have lifted suspension on trading in shares of Chellarams Plc after the conglomerate complied with extant corporate governance rules by submitting its financial statements.
Chellarams, which is listed on the growth board of the NGX, was suspended in September 2021 after it failed to meet the required corporate governance rules at the exchange.
In a circular at the weekend, NGX Regulation (NGXReg), the regulatory arm for the NGX Group, stated that Chellarams has filed its audited financial statements for the year ended March 31 2021 and unaudited financial statements for the quarter ended June 30 2021, thus the lifting of the suspension on its shares. The lifting of suspension took effect on Friday, November 12, 2021.
Rule 3.3 of the Default Filing Rules of the NGX stipulates that “the suspension of trading in the issuer’s securities shall be lifted upon submission of the relevant accounts provided the Exchange is satisfied that the accounts comply with all applicable rules of the Exchange”.
Post-listing rules at the NGX require quoted companies to submit their audited earnings reports, not later than 90 calendar days after the expiration of the period. The rules also require quoted companies to submit interim report not later than 30 calendar days after the end of the relevant period.
Not less than 85 per cent of quoted companies including African Alliance Insurance and Royal Exchange use the 12-month Gregorian calendar year as their business year. The business year thus terminates on December 31. While March 31 is usually the deadline for submission of annual report for companies with Gregorian calendar business year, the deadline for the quarterly report is a month after the quarter. Suspension and compulsory delisting from the market are the highest levels of sanctions for failure to adhere to extant listing and corporate governance rules. The NGX also tags and applies fines on companies that fail to meet earnings reports’ deadline. Companies may pay fines that range from N100, 000 to more than N100 million as penalties for delay in the submission of their corporate earnings reports. Companies that also delayed their financial statements and accounts face threats of suspension and delisting in addition to the monetary fines.
Chellarams, one of Nigeria’s oldest companies, was established in Nigeria in 1923 and quoted on the NGX. The majority core investors in Chellarams had recently decided not to dilute the existing concentrated shareholding of the company, […]