Embattled South-Africa owned telecommunications giant, MTN, has suspended dividends payouts from Nigeria, its third biggest market.
The telecoms company announced this in Johannesburg, as the firm faces allegations it illegally moved out of Nigeria.
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.
The company is alleged to have unlawfully repatriated 13.97 billion dollars between 2006 and 2016. It was alleged that MTN did not obtain certificates declaring it had invested foreign currency in Nigeria within a 24-hour deadline stipulated in a 1995 law. Thus, the repatriation of returns on those investments was illegal.
However, the firm, in its quarterly update said: “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.”
Third-quarter user numbers have fallen slightly as a result of a weak run in South Africa, where MTN vies for market share with Vodacom and Cell Companies.
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.
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.
