Regulation, threat to registrars’ revenue — UniCap GMD

IT has been observed that regulation has posed a significant threat to the revenues of registrars in Nigeria.

Mrs Toyin Sanni, Group Managing Director of United Capital Plc (UniCap), made the observation during her keynote address at the African Prudential Stakeholders’ Forum last Friday in Lagos.

Speaking on the theme, ‘Leveraging opportunities in an evolving capital market; the changing roles of registrars’, Sanni noted that only forward-looking registrars who were redefining their business, reviewing models in response to this threat, would overcome, citing African Prudential Plc as an example.

She said regulations such as dematerialsation of shares, e-dividend, banking industry reforms, among others, driven by the technology and innovation as impacted on registrars bottom line negatively.

While advising registrars on diversification, she said they must look for more opportunities, even beyond the capital market to provide other services, finding “the new jobs to be done for clients that will generate revenues for today and the future.”

UniCap GMD, however, noted that the changing dynamics were also beneficial to the business of the registrars and must be seen as such, not just as eroding the revenue base.

“With regulation and technological trends, we have seen enhanced efficiency, increased specialisation, encouraged competition and improved service delivery by registrar businesses,” she noted

She, therefore, advised that traditional registrar services must be expanded,  technological trends explored to innovate products, just as the digital revolution must be embraced.

“The Nigerian capital market is still evolving. Thus, registrars generally have voids to fill within their regulatory ambit,” Sanni said.

Earlier in her welcome address, the Chairman of African Prudential Plc, Mrs Eniola Fadayomi, had noted that to continuously innovate:

“A company must be agile and must adapt to the changing times. In other words, the company must be mindful of the fact that corporate success has its inherent risks and dangers – complacency,” she posited.

She noted that at Africa Prudential Plc, change and innovation is paramount for a sustainable future for thus company, thus the importance of the Stakeholder Forum.

“This forum is organised to provide an opportunity for our company and all its stakeholders to examine the past, present and future outlook of the capital market with a view to charting a road map for the future for all players in the industry in a genial atmosphere of robust debate,” she said.