By 
By IT Edge News
MTN Group has begun talks with Nigerian authorities over its latest problems in Nigeria, its biggest market, as the network operator struggles to navigate its way through a recent sanction by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) which has demanded that MTN Nigeria should refund $8.13 billion (about N2.5trillion) allegedly repatriated illegally out of Nigeria.
Coming only two years after it was fined more than $1 billion for falling foul of the country’s law on unregistered SIM cards on its network, MTN problems appear to be just unraveling.
Following its latest problems, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported last week that MTN Group shares at Johannesburg Stock Exchange were down 21.4 per cent at 84.35 rand, after touching 83 rand, a level last seen in 2009. It’s a nine-year low that could significantly alter the financial status of Africa’s largest telecom company.
While the company has opened talks with authorities in Abuja, it has also officially refuted the CBN’s position accusing it of financial infractions.
The CBN had alleged that the “Certificate of Capital Importation (CCI) issued in respect of the conversion of shareholders’ loans in MTN Nigeria to preference shares in 2007 had been improperly issued, and that consequently, the historic dividends repatriated by the telecommunications firm between 2007 and 2015 amounting to $8.1 billion needed to be refunded to the apex bank.”
“But in a public response signed by its public relations manager, Funso Aina, MTN claimed no dividends have been declared or paid by the Nigerian arm other than pursuant to CCIs issued by its bankers with the approval of the CBN as required by law.”
The CBN disagreed. It found MTN Nigeria and four commercial banks guilty: Citibank, Stanbic-IBTC, Standard Chartered Bank, and Diamond Bank of financial lapses and undue abuses of the country’s financial laws. The four banks are to refund amounts totaling N5.87 billion.
The apex bank claimed the four commercial banks committed: “flagrant violation of extant laws and regulations of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, including the Foreign Exchange (Monitoring and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1995 and the Foreign Exchange Manual, 2006.”
illegally issued CCIs
While MTN is seeking intervention of key political and financial players in Nigeria, as well as diplomatic mediation by the South African government, the CBN has affirmed that investigations “specifically revealed that $3.45 billion was allegedly repatriated by Standard Chartered Bank on the basis of illegally issued CCIs. While “$2.63 billion, $1.76 billion and $348.9 million were repatriated by Stanbic IBTC Nigeria, Citibank Nigeria and Diamond Bank Plc between 2007 and 2015.”
The CBN’s director of corporate communications, Isaac Okorafor, said ‘the investigations by the CBN in March 2018 became necessary, following allegations of remittances of foreign exchange with irregular CCIs issued on behalf of some offshore investors of MTN Nigeria.’
