SEC NIGERIA SIGNS MOU WITH MAURITIUS

A bilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was on Tuesday (15th May 2012) signed by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Nigeria and the Financial Services Commission of Mauritius, at the ongoing IOSCO annual conference in Beijing, China. The MoU is aimed at further strengthening regulatory cooperation between the two jurisdictions.

The MoU is a veritable regulatory tool used by securities regulators to ensure effective regulation and strengthen securities markets worldwide. It is in line with the foregoing that IOSCO initiated a mandatory Multilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MMoU) ten years ago for its members to enhance cross border cooperation, information sharing and capacity building. The Organisation also encourages members to enter into bilateral memoranda of understanding to foster strong cooperation.

The signing of the bilateral MoU with Mauritius brings to nine the number of MoUs so far entered into by the Commission with other jurisdictions. These include China, Ghana, India, Kenya, Malaysia, South Africa, Tanzania and Uganda. The two jurisdictions stand to mutually benefit from the collaborative agreement especially in the areas of combating cross border financial crimes, increased attraction of investments and enhanced profile.  Other areas of benefit include enhanced information sharing and capacity building which have become critical following the global financial crisis.