NASDAQ, the United States based technological Stock Exchange has honoured a Canadian based Nigerian entrepreneur, Dr Isa Odidi and his wife, Amina Odidi.
They were invited by NASDAQ to ring the opening bell before trading begins in New York City.
The Nigerian and wife  are top pharmaceutical scientists and prolific inventors in Canada whose pharmaceutical company Intellipharmaceutics, has become a success story.
 They are the first Nigerian couples and Nigerian owned pharmaceutical company to ring the opening bell at NASDAQ and also the first Nigerians to found and own a company that is publicly traded on the two international stock exchanges i.e., NASDAQ in the United States of America and TSX in Canada.
In 1998, Dr. Isa Odidi and Dr. Amina Odidi co-founded the publicly-traded Canadian based Intellipharmaceutics International Inc.  The company specializes in the research, development and manufacture of novel or generic controlled release and targeted release oral solid dosage drugs. The Company’s patented Hypermatrix(tm) technology is a unique and validated multidimensional controlled-release drug delivery platform that can be applied to the efficient development of a wide range of existing and new pharmaceuticals. Based on this technology, Intellipharmaceutics has a pipeline of products in various stages of development in therapeutic areas that include neurology, cardiovascular, GIT, pain and infection. The Company has three products under review with the FDA for the purpose of obtaining regulatory approval. These represent a 6 billion dollars in brand sales.
Intellipharmaceutics’ lead generic product under development is Dexmethylphenidate XR (dexmethylphenidate hydrochloride), a generic version of Focalin XR(r), which is an extended-release capsule for the treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. In 2008, Focalin(r), including Focalin XR(r), had U.S. sales of approximately U.S. $350 million.
Intellipharmaceutics’ lead non-generic product under development is Rexista(tm) oxycodone, an abuse- and alcohol-deterrent controlled-release oral formulation of controlled-release oxycodone hydrochloride for the relief of pain.