The Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, has directed capital market operators to renew their registration from January 1 to 31, 2026.

In a bid to make the process as seamless as possible, the Commission also disclosed that it will commence electronic receipt and processing of applications for registration and updates of registration information in the first quarter of 2026.

Director General of the SEC, Dr. Emomotimi Agama, stated this during an interview in Abuja at the weekend.

According to Agama, “These initiatives reflect our commitment to leveraging technology for faster, more transparent, and efficient regulatory processes. The Commission is taking deliberate steps to make regulatory processes faster, more transparent, and technology-driven. We are investing in automation, database supervision, and secure infrastructure to improve how we interact with the market.

The SEC boss stated that through its Digital Transformation Portal, the Commission has automated registration and licensing end-to-end as operators can now submit applications, upload documents, and track approvals online, cutting down manual processing time and reducing the need for physical visits.

He said the Commission has also rolled out the Commercial Paper issuance module, which allows operators to file documents, monitor progress, and receive approvals electronically while feedback from early users shows a clear improvement in turnaround time.

“Work is ongoing to automate quarterly and annual returns submissions, with structured templates and system checks to ensure accuracy. A returns analytics dashboard is also in development to support risk-based supervision and exception reporting.

“To back these changes, we have started upgrading our IT infrastructure, servers, storage, networks, and security layers, to boost speed and reliability. Selective cloud migration is underway for platforms that need scalability and external access, while core internal systems remain on premisev5p for now as we assess security and cost implications.” (Vanguard)