The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and the Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE) yesterday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that will see the two exchanges cooperating in promoting cross listing and trading of green bonds in Nigeria and Luxembourg.
The agreement was signed yesterday at the sidelines of the annual meeting of the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) in Singapore. Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Mr Oscar Onyema and Chief Executive Officer, Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE ), Mr. Robert Scharfe signed the MoU.
The MoU also establishes an agreement for the two exchanges to collaborate with a view to sharing best practices and organising joint initiatives in their respective markets.
With more than 35,000 listed securities, including more than 29,000 bonds, from 3,000 issuers in 100 countries, LuxSE is one of the world’s leading exchanges for the listing of international financial securities.
In 2016, LuxSE launched the Luxembourg Green Exchange (LGX) and became the first exchange in the world to operate a platform dedicated entirely to sustainable financial securities. LGX has become a meeting place for impact-conscious issuers and investors, and now has a 50 per cent market share of listed green, social and sustainability bonds worldwide. LuxSE also operates a specialist subsidiary, Fundsquare, which provides services to support and standardise cross-border distribution of investment funds.
Onyema said the collaboration reinforces NSE’s drive to foster the growth of sustainable finance in Nigeria, a journey that commenced with the launch of the first sovereign green bond by NSE, in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Environment, Federal Ministry of Finance and the Debt Management Office.
According to him, with the MoU, issuers will enjoy the benefit of increased visibility through the cross listing of their securities in Nigeria and Luxembourg.
“The partnership will further facilitate the growth of the green finance industry in Nigeria and ultimately deepen the Nigerian capital market through the mobilisation of the foreign green capital needed to fund sustainable projects in Nigeria,” Onyema said.
Scharfe noted that sustainable finance is becoming a truly global movement adding that by joining forces with other exchanges to promote and facilitate green finance, LuxSE strives to accelerate the sustainable finance agenda and increase awareness and interest in investment projects that support the sustainable development that the world needs.
