Top CEOs, Governors, and Royals Storm Lagos as PEARL Awards Marks 30 Years of Celebrating Corporate Excellence

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Lagos came alive on Sunday as the 30th Anniversary edition of the prestigious PEARL Awards Nite drew top corporate leaders, policymakers, business executives, governors, and traditional rulers to celebrate three decades of honouring excellence, transparency, and performance in Nigeria’s capital market.

Themed “Celebrating a Legacy of Corporate Excellence,” the milestone event featured new award categories, high-level presentations, and the public unveiling of the 2026 Nigerian Stock Market Annals, a comprehensive compendium of market trends, analytical methodologies, and economic insights.

Among the dignitaries in attendance were the Ooni of Ife, His Imperial Majesty Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi; the Chairman of the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX), Alhaji (Dr.) Umaru Kwairanga; and the governors of Lagos and Enugu states, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu and Dr. Peter Mbah, who were honoured under the newly introduced Public Governance Award category.

President of PEARL Awards Nigeria, Mr. Tayo Orekoya, opened the ceremony by reflecting on three decades of upholding integrity, merit, and measurable performance in corporate reward systems. He noted that the Awards have grown into one of the nation’s most credible platforms for evaluating listed companies based on empirical data and verifiable metrics.

The 2025 edition further expanded this legacy with the introduction of the PEARL Excellence in Public Governance Award, recognising public officials driving accountability, innovation, and impactful governance.

Across multiple categories, companies including Prescott Plc, BUA Foods Plc, Transnational Corporation Plc, Unilever Nigeria Plc, Seplat Energies, Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc, Champion Breweries, and NEM Insurance Plc clinched top honours for outstanding performance in the 2024 financial year.

The highly coveted PEARL Awards CEO of the Year went to Dr. Owen Omogaifo, Group CEO of Transnational Corporation Plc.

Delivering a goodwill message, Enugu State Governor Dr. Peter Mbah, represented by Deputy Governor Barr. Ifeanyi Ossai, applauded the Awards’ consistency but called for a restructuring of development financing for states. He argued that sub-national development should not rely on commercial lending rates and urged the creation of a flexible, capital-market-backed funding portfolio for infrastructure expansion.

Also speaking, NGX CEO, Mr. Jude Chiemeka, highlighted the Exchange’s evolution into a multi-asset marketplace with 147 listed companies and 102 Federal Government bonds. He reaffirmed NGX’s commitment to supporting the Federal Government’s ambition of building a $1 trillion economy, urging more companies to list for enhanced transparency and tax compliance.

Former Minister of Budget and National Planning and immediate past SEC Chairman, Sen. Udoma Udo Udoma, who delivered the keynote address, underscored the central role of a transparent capital market in Nigeria’s economic growth. Now Chairman of Seplat Energy Plc, he praised the market’s transformation from manual trading to fully digital operations, describing it as one of the nation’s most significant development achievements.

He emphasised that strong market governance boosts investor confidence, drives capital inflows, spurs corporate expansion, and creates jobs. “When governance is strong, confidence rises and growth becomes inevitable,” Udoma said.

The glamorous night ended with widespread commendations as the PEARL Awards reaffirmed its commitment to promoting excellence, transparency, and innovation in Nigeria’s capital market for the next decades.