AFEX Gets SEC’s Approval To Trade Agric Products On Commodities Exchange

AFEX Commodities Exchange has received the support and backing of the Security and Exchange Commission towards boosting investment, wealth creation, and employment generation in the agriculture commodities value chain.

The Executive Commissioner, Operations, SEC, Dayo Obisan, said this during a media chat held at the APEX Head Office in Abuja.

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He said that AFEX Commodities Exchange creates a level playing field for operators, investors, and farmers by providing price discovery, transparency and quality of agriculture commodities which is important for the growth of the market.

He said, “Opportunities that exist in commodities exchange are huge because of the massive population in Nigeria, and many people in the country are yearning for opportunities to invest and create wealth. This is what AFEX seeks to promote.”

The Executive Commissioner, who was represented by the HOD, Registration, Exchanges, Market, Infrastructure, FINTEC and Innovations Department, Emomotimi Agama,said that the essence of the Investors’ Week is to provide education to farmers.

He explained that financial literate market participants are better enabled to take advantage of new opportunities in the capital market and drive up the level of activities and diversity in the market.

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He said, “As far as NSE is concerned, the opportunities in the commodity space are humongous, if you think about the realities in Nigeria Investment space, you think about commodities.

“Listing the agriculture produce as a commodity is a way of growing the agriculture value chain, and we are in full support and making sure that we feed a hungry nation.”

Speaking further, Agama explained that the Commission is committed to promoting the dissemination of information about Nigeria’s capital market that provides investors with the critical knowledge required to make better decisions about investing in the market.

He said, “We are happy that together with key stakeholders like AFEX we can facilitate this movement of financial literacy.

“Financial literacy on the intricacies of how commodities market work is one of the key ingredients to de-risking the sector, building trust, and growing markets for a sustainable food system.

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“The holistic approach AFEX and SEC are taking to ensure a viable commodities ecosystem will not only help to understand the advantages of commodities as an alternative investment option, but also grow people’s trust in the system and between key players in the value chain.

“This is so important for the growth of this market, and indeed the economy and that is why we are associated with AFEX commodities market .”

The Chief Executive Officer, AFEX, Ayodeji Balogun, in his remarks noted that the company has reached over 106,000 farmers and traded over 135,000 metric tons of commodities with a total turnover of $41.5m (N14.9bn).

He explained that AFEX seeks to introduce products that would de-risk the sector, drive financial inclusion for rural communities, develop technology for data collection and market access and enable the deployment of capital.

“So for us at AFEX, it is important that we build an inclusive market.
Today we have 310, 000 registered farmers as their cooperatives registered with the Exchange, and they have access to the transaction through their cooperative structures.

“We operate in 600 communities across the country and with the most recent counts we have 60 warehouses across 15 States that then get across their community.”

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According to him, commodities traded on the Exchange include paddy rice, soya bean, cocoa, sorghum, maize and ginger, adding that other content which span across market access, trading strategies, and community engagement, are accessible to investors.

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