Fakoyejo Olalekan
Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO) risks facing regulatory sanction over its Audited Financial Statements (AFS) for the year ended 31 December 2022.
GTCO, the parent company established out of Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) revealed that the company will be unable to meet the regulatory due date for filing financial statements.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelPrime Business Africa understands that publicly listed companies on the Nigerian Stock Exchange are mandated to publish their quarterly results 30 days after the end of each quarter according to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) listing rules.
SEC also stated that companies are to release Annual Audited Financial Statements (AFS) within 90 days after the year-end.
However, last year, the capital market regulator informed publicly-listed companies like GTCO that they can release their yearly financial statements within 60 days if they are unable to submit their earnings report for the fourth quarter, which is 30 days after the quarter.
In an investor document obtained by Prime Business Africa on Thursday, but dated March 21, 2023, Guaranty Trust Holding Company said the firm’s Audited Financial Statements for 2022 will most likely be released after the regulatory date of March 31, 2023.
It was gathered that GTCO hasn’t received regulatory approval to release the earnings report, which means shareholders remain in the dark concerning the financial strength of the lender, which lost part of its revenue market share in the first half (H1) of 2022.
Its failure to obtain regulatory approval or release the financial statements within the capital market’s authority timeframe is despite GTCO’s board of directors approving the earnings result on January 27, 2023.
GTCO didn’t reveal if the company requested a deadline extension from SEC, but releasing the financial statements after the regulatory due date will lead to sanction from the capital market regulator.
Recall that Prime Business Africa previously reported that Ecobank, PZ Cussons and John Holt were hit with a monetary fine for also releasing their financial statements after the deadline.
SEC fined Ecobank N3.2 million, PZ Cussons fined N4.8 million and John Holt was sanctioned with N3.2 million for late publications.
In the document, GTCO said: “Kindly be informed that Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc’s (the Company) Audited Financial Statements (AFS) for the year ended December 31, 2022, was approved by the Board of Directors on January 27, 2023, and other requisite approvals required for the publication of the AFS are being processed.
“In view of the foregoing, the Company will publish its AFS after receipt of all requisite approvals which may be after the NGX’s regulatory filing date of March 31, 2023.
“However, kindly be assured that the Company’s AFS would be released to the market immediately all requisite approvals are received.”
