Nigeria’s senate withdraws report exonerating MTN of illegal forex transfers
Abuja — Nigeria’s senate has withdrawn a report that largely exonerated MTN of accusations of illegally repatriating $14bn and that rebuked the Nigerian central bank for regulatory failures. The report, presented to the senate on Thursday and reviewed by Reuters, was almost immediately sent back for further work because it did not capture possible infractions by all stakeholders, two people familiar with the matter said. The upper house of parliament agreed last September to investigate whether Africa’s biggest telecoms company unlawfully repatriated $13.92bn from Nigeria — its most lucrative market which generates a third of its revenue — between 2006 and 2016. MTN, which has denied any wrongdoing, could not immediately be reached for comment. The crux of the allegation is that MTN did not obtain certificates declaring it had invested foreign currency in Nigeria within a 24-hour deadline as stipulated in a 1995 law, and so the repatriation of returns on those investments was illega...
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