Address by Executive Director, Regulation, The NSE, Tinuade Awe at Capital Market Information Security Forum 2019

Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen,

I have great pleasure in welcoming you to this event which is 7th edition of the Nigerian Capital Market Information Security Forum (NCMISF) on behalf of our Chief Executive Officer, Oscar N. Onyema, OON who has asked me to represent him.

As we hope many of you know, at the Nigerian Stock Exchange, our vision is to be the Africa’s Preferred Exchange Hub.

We want to provide investors and businesses a reliable, efficient and an adaptable exchange hub, to save and to access capital.

We operate in Africa but we possess a holistic world view. Because markets are global and interconnected, we are committed to achieving the highest levels of competitiveness across our business, matching local expertise with global insights demonstrating best practices and working collaboratively with others.

This forum brings together the stakeholders in the Nigerian capital market with the aim of collaborating and sharing ideas on information security best practices and cyber breaches, not only within the Nigerian capital market but the global capital market at large.

Our theme this year centers on protecting Personally Identifiable Information (PII). The Nigeria Data Protection Regulation gives an insight into the National Information Technology Development Agency’s (NITDA) aspiration towards securing the processes that Nigerian organizations use for collecting, processing and storing information related to their clients, the Data Subject. It is also applicable to Nigerians residing outside Nigeria. The requirements of the Regulation are challenging. However the Nigerian Capital Market cannot be left behind in this regard.

Today, the Exchange on through the auspices of this 7th NCMISF is leading the drive for compliance with the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR) in the Nigerian Capital Market. We have a capital market that is data-driven and responsive to the needs of the public, therefore, upholding compliance is key for us. We are set to raise the bar in compliance, I thereby, encourage us to open our minds to other possibilities on the horizon; the transformational power arising from “the fourth industrial revolution.

Data is at the core of the forth industrial revolution, and this industrial wave can usher in great opportunities when harnessed appropriately. We now have the internet of things and everyone is getting connected. Extracting these opportunities, refining and transforming prospects with high efficiency into real products is not easy, yet with innovation it can be accomplished.

To realize this objective, a new way of thinking, and indeed rethinking the central importance of data and the individual in our businesses is fundamental to our riding on the crest of the new wave. Our ethics and reputation are important to us, hence we must protect our data, including those entrusted to our care relating to natural persons. Respecting data privacy rule is the reason for our gathering today.

We are not only set to safeguard the rights of natural persons to data privacy, we are also poised to ensure that Nigerian businesses remain competitive in international trade through the safe-guards afforded by a just and equitable legal regulatory framework on data protection and which is in tune with best practice.

Therefore, the Nigerian Stock Exchange, is pleased to unveil the 7th edition of its bi-annual Nigerian Capital Market Information Security Forum (NCMISF), themed, “The Nigeria Data Protection Regulation: Achieving Compliance”.

I hereby urge everyone to imbibe, collaborate and share ideas on achieving compliance with the Regulation while working towards building an intelligent data driven capital market.

Thank you all.

Picture caption:

L – R shows Mr. Rasaq Ozemede  Chief Risk Officer, The NSE; Mr. Michael Ango Associate Director, Andersen Tax; Mr. Akin Oyegoke, Managing Consultant, Johan Consults; Ms. Tinuade Awe Executive Director, Regulation, NSE; Mr. Linus Osita Okeke, Partner Ernst & Young and Mrs. Oluyemi Obadare Business Continuity Manager, NSE during the Nigerian Capital Market Information Security Forum 2019, theme: The Nigeria Data Protection Regulation – Achieving Compliance” at the Exchange on Thursday in Lagos.