Business News: Shareholders Kick as CBN Suspends MTN's Dividend Payout

Shareholders have reacted sharply to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)’s order on the suspension of MTN Group’s dividend payment from its Nigerian subsidiary, MTN Nigeria, over an alleged illegal repatriation of funds to South Africa. The shareholders, who spoke yesterday, faulted the move, insisting that dividend that has been declared must be paid.

The South African telecoms giant in a quarterly update to its shareholders, yesterday, in Johannesburg, South Africa, claimed that it was not guilty of the illegal repatriation charges levelled against it by the Nigerian Senate. The CBN had ordered the four commercial banks operated by MTN to suspend dividend payout from Nigeria. The banks are Standard Chartered Bank, Stanbic IBTC, Diamond Bank and Citi Bank. But in a swift reaction the CBN Spokesman, Isaac Okorafor, said yesterday that he was not aware of the order. 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 and therefore the repatriation of returns on those investments was illegal