CSCSs claim on online real time doubtful

Contrary to the Central Securities Clearing System (CSCSs) claim that it now does its business full time on an online real time basis, investigations have shown that the clearing house still carries out its operations manually.Further investigations showed that the CSCS, which serves a clearing house to most financial institutions, and a sister body of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), fails to operate fully online and real time and this is impeding the operations of dealing members of the Exchange.Findings revealed that registrars of companies who were the custodian of records of investors in the market were mostly affected by the CSCS failure to really drive its operations electronically.Lending credence to Nigerian Tribunes findings, the Managing Director of First Registrar Limited, Mr. Bayo Olugbemi, said the issue of online real time was still lacking in the stock market.He said the CSCS still sent hard disks on active stocks to registrars of companies once in a week about transaction done on shareholders account, while for non active stocks it took the clearing house about two to three weeks to turn in the disks.According to Olugbemi, the delay in registrars getting information from the CSCS about shareholders stocks position had resulted in unnecessary shortcomings in the updating of registers of shareholders.A shareholder of CSCS had recently faulted the companys N2.5 million annual technical agreements with the Exchange, describing it as inimical to development of the company.The shareholder argued that since the NSE was the parent company of the CSCS, entering into a management and technical service agreement should not have come into place as it amounted to a double standard.He called on the management of both companies to reverse the agreement and refund monies paid so far to CSCS shareholders.The CSCS, in its 2008 annual report, said it entered into a management and technical service agreement with the Exchange for the provision of support by the NSE in the areas of management, operations, technological process, and marketing, training and human resource development.According to the CSCS, remuneration is at the rate of N2.5 million per annum for management services and actual cost of staff transferred to the company by the Exchange pursuant to this agreement.
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