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Tag: MTN

  • MTN tests Facebook’s Voyager

    MTN tests Facebook’s Voyager

    The MTN Group yesterday  it is the first mobile operator in the world to use the open optical packet transport platform, known as Voyager, after joining the Telecom Infra Project (TIP) earlier this year.

    According to MTN: “The TIP initiative, which was launched in February 2016, is a global endeavour which brings together key stakeholders in the telecoms and technology space to collaborate on the development of new technologies and find fresh approaches to build and deploy telecom network infrastructure. The project aims to reduce costs and increase the speed of rolling out internet connectivity.”

    The organisation expressed delight about the development.

    Navi Naidoo, a group network technology officer at MTN, said in a stetement: “As MTN, we are excited about the possibility of bringing more than 19Tbps of connectivity to the community, using open optical networking technology. Open platforms move away from the vendors’ proprietary platforms which usually come at a huge cost.”

  • MTN suspends dividends payout

    MTN suspends dividends payout

    Shareholders got yesterday a piece of bad news from mobile giant MTN.

    The company has suspended dividends payouts from Nigeria, its third biggest market.

    Third-quarter user numbers have fallen slightly – no thanks to a weaker showing in South Africa, where MTN vies for market share with Vodacom and Cell Companies.

    The telecoms company announced this in Johannesburg, as the firm faces allegations it illegally moved $14 billion out of Nigeria.

    MTN Group’s next chief executive will take over three months ahead of plan.

    Rob Shuter, Vodafone European boss, was due to start in July 2017. However, MTN said in a statement accompanying its quarterly updates that the new officer would now start on March 13, 2017.

    South Africa-born Shuter, a banker with risk management background, will inherit a company that is the subject of a parliamentary investigation in Nigeria. It is alleged to have unlawfully repatriated 13.97 billion dollars between 2006 and 2016.

    “MTN Nigeria continues to refute the allegations that it had improperly repatriated funds from Nigeria.

    “Consequently, MTN Nigeria will strongly defend any action that would be prejudicial to its interest”, the company said in its quarterly update.

    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 stipulated in a 1995 law.

    It, therefore, said that the repatriation of returns on those investments was illegal.

    MTN this year agreed to pay a reduced fine of 1.08 billion dollars (N330 billion) to end a long running dispute over unregistered SIM cards in Nigeria.

    Shares in the company have fallen by more than 14 per cent to their lowest level in more than six years since the latest issue surfaced on September 27.

     

  • Alleged $13.9b repatriated fund: Our story, by MTN

    Telecoms giant MTN accused of illegally repatriating $13.9 billion from the country has  explained that  it could not comply with the law requiring issuance of Certificates of Capital Importation (CCIs) within 24 hours of conversion because it  is an “administrative requirement”.

    The CCI is a requirement under the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) financial and miscellaneous provisions Act.

    Senator Dino Melaye had accused the telco of underhand dealings in connivance with other persons to ship the much-needed foreign exchange out of the country between 2006 and 2016 in contravention of the financial regulatory laws of the country to obtain a CCI within 24 hours before moving the money out of the country.

    He alleged that the Minister of Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah, and four commercial banks-Standard Chartered Bank, Stanbic IBTC, Diamond Bank and Citi Bank as conduits through which the funds were ferried out of the country.

    The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of MTN Nigeria, Ferdi Moolman, explained that it was practically impossible for the company to comply with the 24 hours required to issue the CCI before moving funds.

    He said: “The requirement to issue a CCI within 24 hours of conversion is an administrative requirement. “As such, the CBN has the authority, and indeed we believe approved the banks’ applications to issue CCIs outside the recommended time frame.

    “Often, for various reasons (such as not having all the required documentation for instance), it is not possible to issue a CCI within 24 hours, and the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Forex Manual contemplates such situations by asking that the banks refer to the CBN for approval.”

    Moolman, who spoke through a statement issued from South Africa, said no dividends were declared or paid until the CCIs were issued and finalised. He added that MTN Nigeria only requested CCIs for Foreign Capital that was imported into Nigeria, and dividends were externalised on CCIs.

    As the investigation began, Bloomberg news reported the value of the shares of the telecom giant slumped to a six-year low.

    The report said the stock declined 2.3 per cent to 107.50 rand (about N2,424.82) by the close of the market in Johannesburg, the lowest since July 2010, stretching the slide to 13 percent since the allegations were first raised in September.

  • $13b repatriation: MTN clarifies issue on CCIs

    $13b repatriation: MTN clarifies issue on CCIs

    Mobile Telecommunications Network (MTN) Nigeria Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ferdinand Moolman yesterday said the firm did not declare or pay any dividends.

    He said this could only be done when Certificates of Capital Importation (CCIs) were issued and finalised.

    Moolman, in a statement by the telecommunications firm’s Group Corporate Affairs, added that MTN only requested CCIs for Foreign Capital that was imported into Nigeria and dividends were externalised on CCIs.

    A  CCI is a certificate issued by a Nigerian bank confirming an inflow of foreign capital either in the form of cash (loan or equity) or goods.

    A CCI is usually issued in the name of the investor within 24- 48 hours of the inflow of the capital into Nigeria.

    The MTN CEO was one of those who appeared before the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and other Financial Institutions investigative hearing to answer questions on MTN’s alleged infraction in the repatriation of $13 billion.

    The Senate, on September 27, resolved to invite MTN over allegation that the company connived with the Minister of Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah and four banks to defraud the country by failing to obtain CCI before moving funds outside the country.

    But Moolman noted that dividends were only externalised on CCI.

    He said: “Often for various reasons (such as not having all required documentation for instance), it is not possible to issue a CCI within 24 hours, and the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Forex Manual contemplates such situations by asking that the banks refer to the CBN for approval.

    “Besides, the requirement to issue a CCI within 24 hours of conversion is an administrative requirement. As such, the CBN has the authority, and indeed we believe, approved the banks’ applications to issue CCIs outside the recommended time frame.”

    Moolman had, in his address at the hearing, said MTN Group publishes its financials every year, thereby opening up its books transparently for public scrutiny.

    He noted that globally, Foreign Direct Investments are motivated by opportunities and the enabling environment, which the host country provides.

    MTN’s success, he said, was indeed a catalyst for many international companies to invest in Nigeria.

    He said: “It is instructive to note that according to the latest National Bureau of Statistics Telecommunications Report, Telecoms contributed approximately 8.83 per cent to Nigeria’s GDP in the first quarter of 2016.

    “On the back of this, it is probably fair to say that MTN alone has contributed three-four to Nigeria’s GDP.

    “In more simple terms, since we launched in 2001, we have created direct and indirect employment opportunities for more than 500,000 Nigerians. We have also contributed more than N1.8 trillion towards government in the form of licence fees, taxes, levies, right of way etc.

    “In closing, there are three key things I would like to emphasise regarding Certificates of Capital Importation (CCIs). These are; firstly, no dividends were declared or paid until the CCIs were issued and finalised. Secondly, MTN Nigeria only requested CCIs for Foreign Capital imported into Nigeria, and finally, dividends were externalised on CCIs.”

  • Hearing resumes in engineer’s $13m suit against MTN

    Hearing resumes in engineer’s $13m suit against MTN

    The National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN), sitting in Lagos, will today resume hearing in a $13.14 million (about N4.1billion) suit by Mr. Paul Odunewu, an ex-Network Group Operations Manager in MTN Nigeria against the company.

    In the suit, Odunewu accused the company of withholding his entitlements, including a long-term incentive scheme (share option) worth over $13.14 million (about N4.1 billion).

    He is also demanding N100 million damages, among others.

    MTN Group Limited, South Africa; MTN Nigeria and MTN International, Mauritius are the defendants.

    At the last hearing on May 25, Justice Oyejoju Oyewumi dismissed the telecommunications firm’s motion for further amendment, which, among other things, sought to substitute witnesses.

    Defence counsel, Mrs. Ayo Obe, had sought the leave of court to amend MTN’s statement of defence and list of documents and witnesses.

    This was opposed by claimant’s counsel, Kemi Balogun, SAN, on the ground, among others, that the defendants intended to use it to amend their statement of defence without following the due process.

    He said: “There was no mention of amendment of statement of defence. The amendment seeks to change the colouration of the entire case in view of the evidence already tendered.

    “The amendment is seeking to overreach the evidence on record put forth by the claimant. The rules of court does not allow for further affidavit.”

    Upholding Balogun’s submission, Justice Oyewumi held that MTN’s application, if granted, would do injustice to the claimant.

    “The defendant in its statement of defence is seeking at this stage to gag the claimant from preferring evidence in support of his claim and that would do injustice to him.

    “Consequently, the motion for further amendment by the defendants is hereby dismissed,” the judge said.

    At a hearing last November, a former chief executive of the company, Mr. Adrian Wood, told the court that Odunewu increased MTN’s base stations from 100 to 2,500 in three years and was one of 50 top employees of  the company.

    Wood, an Australian, said to keep such top employees, MTN Nigeria initiated a retention policy of leadership development and succession, under which those with potential were identified within the MTN group and nominated for share option.

    He said: “Odunewu was nominated as a key employee and was identified to participate in a share option plan being devised at that time.

    “By 2004, he was one of 50 senior employees chosen to participate in MTN Nigeria’s share offer plan.”

  • Senate summons Emefiele, Enelamah, MTN, others over $14b ‘capital flight’

    Senate summons Emefiele, Enelamah, MTN, others over $14b ‘capital flight’

    The Senate has invited South Africa’s MTN, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, the Minister of Trade and Investment, Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah, four lenders and eight others to appear before it on October 20 for an “investigative hearing” on an allegation that MTN illegally moved $14 billion out of the country.

    The upper house last month agreed to investigate whether the telco wrongly transferred the money out of Nigeria between 2006 and 2016.

    The allegations first appeared in a motion proposed by Senator Dino Melaye to launch an investigation on the matter. It is coming as the country struggles with its first recession in a generation and chronic foreign currency shortages due to a slump in oil prices.

    MTN and Elenemah have denied any wrongdoing.

    The four lenders invited to appear before the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions are Stanbic IBTC Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, Citibank and Diamond Bank, the committee’s chairman, Rafiu Adebayo Ibrahim, said in a statement yesterday. Also to appear before the committee is the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRCN),

    Citi and Diamond Bank declined to comment. A spokesman for Stanbic was unavailable and Standard Chartered said it would cooperate fully with law enforcement agencies.

    Other persons invited to appear include Dr. Pascal Dozie, Ahmed Dasuki, Gbenga Oyebode, Babatunde Folawiyo, Colonel Sani Bello and Victor Odili.

    Senator Ibrahim said the invitation to the affected persons and organisations emanated from a September 27 resolution of the Senate on alleged unscrupulous violation of the Foreign Exchange (Monitoring and Miscellaneous) Act.

    Melaye had accused Enelamah as one of the individuals that assisted MTN to move the cash out of the country through the incorporation of offshore companies in Cayman Island, Mauritus and the British Virgin Islands.

    Shares in MTN extended losses yesterday, falling 2.3 per cent to R110.67, partly on news of the hearing.

    The Senate move is likely to raise tensions between Nigeria and MTN.

    The allegation is coming months after the carrier agreed to pay a greatly reduced fine of N330 billion  ($1.1 billion) to end a long-running dispute over the size of the penalty imposed on it by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) over its failure to disconnect active unregistered subscriber identity module (SIM) cards from its network. Total fine originally was set at $5.9 billion.

  • MTN gets regulatory affairs head

    MTN yesterday appointed Felleng Sekha, a South African, as its new executive for regulatory affairs and public policy effective from October 10.

    A spokesman said yesterday that Sekha has extensive regulatory experience and previously worked at MTN in various roles, including for five years in Nigeria as executive director for corporate services.

    “Felleng will… shape public policy and regulatory outcomes which are key to MTN achieving its business objectives,” MTN spokesman Chris Maroleng, said.

    A huge fine in Nigeria had dragged the telco to half-yearly loss.The firm, which had been fined over $1 billion by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) over  subscriber identity module (SIM) cards registration infraction reached an amicable settlement with the regulator that will see it pay the fine in staggered for.

  • EFCC partners MTN to fight crimes

    The South- south Zonal Head of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Ishaq Salihu, has said the commission will partner with MTN in the fight against economic and financial crimes in the country.

    A statement issued by the EFCC Head of Media and Publicity, Mr. Wilson Uwujaren, said Salihu made the disclosure while receiving some senior officers of MTN who visited the commission’s zonal office in Port Harcourt.

    He said partnering with the company in the fight against money laundering and other forms of economic and financial crimes was vital to the development of the country.

    According to him, such partnership will help reduce capital flight and restore Nigeria’s integrity.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Salihu advised MTN to operate within the ambit of the law and fish out moles within its ranks.

    He added that the EFCC would not spare anyone caught on the wrong side of the law.

  • Senate opposes MTN plan to sack Nigerian workers

    Senate opposes MTN plan to sack Nigerian workers

     The Senate on Tuesday declared as unacceptable a situation where Nigerians working in the telecommunications industry would be indiscriminately relieved of their positions without recourse to the global labour rules and practices.
    Chairman, Senate Committee on Communications, Gilbert Nnaji stated this in Abuja while reacting to report that MTN Nigeria Limited recently sacked over five hundred staff. 
    The committee chairman insisted that “As the representatives of the people we cannot fold our arms and watch our constituents being relieved of their jobs indiscriminately by employers of labour. 
    “We cannot in any way tolerate such. At the same time, we shall also ensure that our foreign investors are not unduly threatened. 
    “When my attention was drawn to this ugly development I immediately contacted the Managing Director of the company. 
    “Although he said that facts were somehow misrepresented in the report he still admitted that it was only the short-term contract staff who work in the call centres that were affected. 
    “I then let him know that it would be proper for him to review the action especially in view of the biting economic situation in the country. 
    “It is only when that option fails that the committee and by extension, Senate, would take a position to protect our people.”
    MTN has since denied the reported sack of its workers. This is the second time in one week that the South African telecoms giant is making public denial. 
    Just last Wednesday it denied an allegation that it had illegally repatriated 13.92 billion dollars from Nigeria, saying the claim was without merit.
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  • MTN denies sack of call centres’ staff

    MTN denies sack of call centres’ staff

    MTN’s attention has been drawn to online media reports claiming that the company has sacked thousands of workers at its call centres.

    Responding to the reports, MTN Executive, Amina Oyagbola, said; “The reports are incorrect. The second phase of a change-in-vendor process took place last week, offering interested workers the opportunity to join the new call centres owned and operated by the vendor; ISON BPO. MTN signed an outsourcing contract with ISON BPO Limited in 2015 following a competitive bid process. Indeed MTN’s call centre operations were outsourced to independent third party agencies since 2008, as part of continued efforts to improve the efficiency and quality of customer service delivery in MTN. This is in line with global best practice for organisations in our industry”.

    ISON Group CEO, Pravin Kumar said: “We have been managing MTN’s call centres since last year when the first phase of the transition was carried out, with the second phase taking place at this time.  “We were pleased to have emerged as the new partner to deliver cost-effective solutions, adopting state-of-the-art technology that supports world-class customer service.

     

    The drive for efficient customer service delivery without compromising on quality within prevailing economic realities comes with structural adjustments and we work to balance this with the need to ensure the sustainability of our operations.  We have continued to engage with those who are interested in taking up the opportunity to work with ISON under agreed terms. At ISON, we remain committed to delivering outsourcing solutions to our clients that also provide thousands of job opportunities to members of the communities in which we operate.”