Business
Mercury Bank to close ALL accounts associated with Nigeria August 22
Mercury Bank has announced the addition of Nigeria to a list of countries prohibited from its banking services.
This decision aligns Nigeria with other countries on the ban list, including Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia, South Sudan, Ukraine Liberia, Syria and 30 others.
Mercury Bank is a prominent America-based financial institution known for its tech-driven banking solutions.
Checks on the company’s website also confirmed that Nigeria is on the list of prohibited countries.
The company said it supports U.S. companies founded by people across the globe, as well as founders and venture capital firms.
However, the bank said it currently cannot open accounts for founders living in prohibited countries and regions.
The prohibition means businesses and individuals living in Nigeria can no longer open new accounts or conduct transactions through the bank.
This move is expected to impact a substantial number of Nigerian entrepreneurs and startups that have relied on the bank’s services for their financial operations.
Explaining the importance of Mercury Bank to Nigerian founders, Seye Bandele, CEO of PaidHR, a Nigeria-based HRTech startup, said the bank simplifies the process for startups in Nigeria to conduct business in the U.S.
“Mercury provides banking services for Delaware C companies, which is usually a requirement for the kind of investment that most founders raise money on,” he said.
“So Mercury provided those banking services whether you’ve been to the US or not, from the US or not, we use something called a registered agent to register your company in the US, and then that registered agent will give you a physical address that the bank use to create your bank account.”
‘MERCURY HAS BEEN A SUBJECT OF REGULATORY CHECKS’
Bandele said although Nigerians are caught in the middle of the policy, Mercury has also been subject to numerous regulatory and compliance checks by their authorities.
“So whatever the reasons for their policy, I understand is just how Nigerians are caught on the wrong side of it,” he said.
John Opeyemi, one of the bank’s customers, expressed his displeasure on X (formerly Twitter) on Monday.
Opeyemi said the bank had requested some documents a few weeks ago, which he promptly provided.
He said he was surprised to receive a notice of his account closure shortly after.
“We regret to inform you that, due to recent changes in how we determine account eligibility, we are no longer able to support accounts for businesses with associated addresses located in these countries,” Mercury’s message to Opeyemi reads.
“Please know that his decision was not made lightly. We apologize for the disruption this may cause, and our team is here to help you work through the account closure over the next few weeks.”
The bank also stated that the closure would take effect on August 22, 2024.
Business
UBA appoints Henrietta Ugboh as independent non-executive director
The United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA) has announced the appointment of Henrietta Ugboh as an independent non-executive director.
In a statement on Wednesday, UBA said the appointment has been approved by the necessary regulatory bodies, including the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
UBA also announced the retirement of Owanari Duke, an independent non-executive director who joined the UBA Group board in October 2012.
Tony Elumelu, chairman of UBA, said Ugboh brings experience and expertise, which includes commercial banking, credit, and risk management to the UBA board.
“Henrietta Ugboh brings a track record of professional success, integrity and leadership, which will further strengthen the UBA Group Board, underlining once again the Group’s commitment to robust corporate governance,” Elumelu said.
According to the bank, Ugboh holds a degree in Economics and Statistics from the University of Benin, an MBA from ESUT Business School, and is an alumna of Harvard Business School’s executive management programme.
UBA also said Ugboh has over 30 years of experience in banking with Citibank and is an honorary senior member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) and a fellow of the Institute of Credit Administration (FICA).
Business
MultiChoice Nigeria loses 243k subscribers in six months, blames inflation
Multichoice Group, an African pay-TV operator, says its Nigerian subsidiary lost 243,000 subscribers across its DStv and GOtv services between April and September 2024.
In its financial result for the year ended September 30, 2024, published on Tuesday, MultiChoice said high cost of food, electricity, and petrol have forced many of its customers to ditch their decoders.
The company said Nigeria and Zambia recorded the largest share of subscribers loss.
It added that the pressure on its subscriber base in Rest of Africa (RoA) operations continued from the previous year leading to a loss of 566,000 subscribers across the operations in the six months under review.
“The group’s linear subscriber base declined by 11% or 1.8m subscribers YoY to 14.9m active subscribers at 30 September 2024,” MultiChoice said.
“The loss in the Rest of Africa has been primarily due to the significant consumer pressure in Nigeria, where inflation has remained above 30% for the majority of the last 12 months and, more recently, due to extreme power disruptions in Zambia.
“Of this decline, 298k related to Zambia and 243k related to Nigeria, with remaining markets on the continent reflecting only a minor decline of 25k.”
On foreign exchange (FX) rate, the company said the continued depreciation of the naira against the dollar has resulted in further losses on non-quasi equity loans.
“The group held USD11m in cash in Nigeria at period-end, down from USD39m at end FY24, a consequence of consistent focus on remitting
cash, the impact of translating the balance at the weaker naira and the write-off of the USD21m receivable relating to the cash held with Heritage Bank before its license was revoked and the bank was liquidated,” MultiChoice said.
‘COMPANY FACING MOST CHALLENGING CONDITIONS’
Commenting on the company’s results, Calvo Mawela, MultiChoice group chief executive officer (CEO), said the company is facing its most challenging operating conditions in almost 40 years.
To generate returns, Mawela said the company has been “proactive in its focus to right-size the business for the current economic realities and industry changes”.
He said while operating across Africa “typically subjects the group to currency moves, abnormal currency weakness over the past 18 months has reduced the group’s profits by close to R7 billion”.
“Combined with the impact of a weak macro environment on consumers’ disposable income and therefore on subscriber growth, it required the Group to fundamentally adjust its cost base – which is exactly what has been done,” he said.
“We are making good progress in addressing the technical insolvency that resulted from non-cash accounting entries at the end of the last financial year.
“We expect to return to a positive net equity position by the end of November this year, supported by a number of developments and initiatives. The Group’s liquidity position remains strong, with over ZAR10bn in total available funds.”
On May 1, MultiChoice implemented an increase in subscription prices for DStv and GOtv packages — despite the tribunal ruling against it on April 25.
Business
NCAA to sanction pilots working for multiple airlines, says it ‘violates regulations’
The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) says it will sanction pilots working for multiple airlines.
In a letter dated November 6, 2024, and addressed to all aircraft operators, titled ‘Prohibition of Ad-Hoc Flight Operations for Multiple Airlines,’ Chris Najomo, the NCAA acting director-general (DG), said the issue was uncovered through the aviation authority’s surveillance reports.
“It has come to the notice of the authority through our surveillance reports that licensed flight crew members utilize the privileges simulators and proficiency checks endorsed on their license to operate for multiple airlines,” the letter reads.
“The Flight Simulator Training Device/facility approved by the Authority is operator specific based on the training program and the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for such an operator.”
According to Najomo, when pilots work for multiple airlines concurrently, without considering the safety implications, it creates a risk for the industry.
He informed all operators and holders of pilot licences that the action will be treated as a violation of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations.
“The authority will take appropriate enforcement action on violators of this directive, effective from November 11, 2024,” he said.
The acting DG added that simulator renewals will now be directly tied to the operators.
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