The Chairman of the PEARL Awards Board of Governors, Tayo Orekoya, said corporate governance, transparency and accountability remained central to the awards’ assessment of companies listed on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), as the board unveiled nominees for the 2026 edition.

Speaking at a press conference in Lagos to announce the nominees and unveil plans for the 2026 awards ceremony, Orekoya said the awards were designed not only to recognise outstanding corporate performance but also to promote sound corporate governance, sustainable business practices and long-term value creation for shareholders and other stakeholders.

He said the initiative has remained committed to fairness, transparency and objectivity since its establishment in 1995.

He explained that the awards use a research-driven, performance-based assessment methodology, distinguishing them from recognition platforms that rely largely on nominations, subjective assessments, or popularity.

According to him, the awards’ credibility rests on measurable financial and market performance indicators, using information from companies’ published yearly reports and the NGX Daily Official Lists.

Orekoya added that the assessment framework covered 10 financial and market performance indicators: turnover growth, return on equity, earnings yield, share price appreciation, current ratio, return on assets, dividend yield, net asset ratio, dividend growth and profit margin ratio.

He said the indicators provided a basis for assessing corporate growth, profitability, operational efficiency, financial strength, shareholder returns and market performance.