The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, has scheduled the sales of Treasury Bills, TBs worth N809.4 billion for the third quarter 2019, Q3’19. This is made public in the bank’s latest Nigeria Treasury Bills Issue programme which was released last weekend.

Treasury Bills are short term debt instruments used by the CBN to borrow money on short term (less than one year) from the general public on behalf of the federal government of Nigeria. The apex bank also uses Treasury Bills to control the supply of money in the economy. The duration of TB issue programme is from June 13 to August 29, 2019.

During this period, the CBN will issue Treasury Bills worth N80.62 billion on 91 days tenor, N154.04 billion on 182 days and N574.71 billion on 364 days. A further breakdown of the programme disclosed that in June 2019, the central bank plans to sell N147.25 billion worth of Treasury Bills, which comprises of N8 billion worth of 91 days bills and N139.25 billion worth of 364 bills. In July, the bank will sell N195.91 billion worth of Treasury Bills, comprising N15.9 billion worth of 91 days bills, N46.6 billion worth of 182 days bills, and N133.46 billion worth of 364 days bills.

Finally, in August, the CBN plans to sell N446.2 billion worth of TBs comprising N36.77 billion worth of 91 days bills, N107.43 billion worth of 182 bills and N302 billion worth of 384 days bills.

Report by Pricewater house Coopers (PwC), a leading financial advisory organisation, has indentified economic environment, corruption and regulation as the top challenges affecting the performances of family businesses in Nigeria. The study, however, says many of the businesses are weathering the storm owing to strong business values cultivated over the years,

The report titled PwC’s 2018 Family Business Survey was unveiled at an event attended by top business executives and regulators in Lagos on Thursday.

PwC, in the report, has urged family businesses to maximise the competitive advantage that comes from their strong values-led culture.

The survey is a global market study among key decision makers in family businesses within a number of PwC’s key territories with a view to understanding family business executives’ thoughts on key contemporary issues.

Themed ‘building a lasting competitive advantage through your values and purpose in a digital age’, this year’s edition says family business leaders reported robust performances last year, with growth hitting its highest level since 2007.

According to the well-researched document, growth among Nigerian family businesses in the year reviewed was lower than the global average. It shows that 53 per cent of the operators reported growth as against the 69 per cent global average.

However, 87 per cent of the respondents, according to the survey, expect to grow in the next two years, with 40 per cent saying that “growth will be quick and aggressive”.

A statement by the firm says: “The top three challenges cited by Nigerian family businesses as militating against the personal and business goals are economic environment (70 per cent), corruption (67 per cent) and regulation (57 per cent). Corruption, which PwC estimates could cost up to 37 per cent of Nigeria’s GDP by 2030 if unchecked, is associated with lower investment, higher prices as well as (causing) barriers of entry for businesses.

READ: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/06/pwc-report-links-family-business-growth.html

As part of measures to discourage tobacco use in Nigeria, the federal government has said it will raise the excise tax of N20 on each pack of 20 cigarette sticks to N40 in June.

The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Health, Abdulaziz Abdullahi revealed this at a Ministerial press briefing in Abuja during the weekend.

He lamented the high burden of tobacco in Nigeria, saying no fewer than 16,100 persons are killed every year in the country as result of its use. He said, “Considering the role of weighty tobacco excise tax in demand-reduction, the Ministry is canvassing with the Fiscal Authorities to raise the excise beyond the current rate so that Nigeria can be at par with the ECOWAS directive on harmonization of excise duties.

The current tax regime in Nigeria is 20 percent ad valorem duty rate in addition to a specific excise tax of N20 per pack of 20 sticks of cigarettes which is expected to jump to N40 per pack by June this year. “Our first target is to quickly attain the ECOWAS bench mark and then ultimately get an excise tax of at least 70% of retail sales price of all tobacco products.

The long awaited Regulations to the National Tobacco Control Act has finally been approved by the National Assembly on the 28th of May 2019 in line with Section 39 of the Act.” Abdullahi maintained that though tobacco is a legitimate product in Nigeria, its use in any form or disguise including exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke is very hazardous. “Estimates from the Tobacco Atlas 6th edition shows that over 16,100 persons are killed every year in Nigeria as result of tobacco-related diseases,” he stressed.

While addressing journalists, the World Health Organization, WHO, Officer-in-Charge for Nigeria, Dr. Clement Peters, said: “We need to embrace the proven health benefits of stopping tobacco use as well as the feasible actions that the public and governments can take to reduce the risks to lung health posed by tobacco.”

A former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Obadiah Mailafia, has said that the Lagos State Government is using corrupt consultants to collect tax from the people.

Mailafia, who described the act as daylight robbery, called on the people of Lagos to rise against such extortion and corruption. The former CBN deputy governor said this during an interview on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Tuesday.

Mailafa, who praised Lagos for being able to increase its Internally Generated Revenue, said there was room for doing things in a better, transparent and more effective manner. He lamented that tax consultants in Lagos receive as high as 20 per cent commission in some instances which was against the norm in other advanced climes.

Mailafia said when the people see that their taxes are being put to good use, they would be willing to pay more hence the spike in IGR during the administration of former Governor Babatunde Fashola.

The former CBN deputy governor said, “Lagos which was the poster child for success in internally generated revenue, still has a lot of issues there. I love Lagos but of course, Lagosians were very reluctant to pay more tax but when they realised Fashola was doing a lot of work, they were more than happy to pay.

“But there is a problem. The cost of extracting this taxation is one of the highest in the world. They have invited very dubious consultants who keep between 15 to 20 per cent of this tax. I think it is a form of iniquity and I don’t know why for the life of me, Lagosians tolerate that nonsense.

“It is their money and it is daylight robbery. Employ people, train them; let the government collect the tax, not private consultants. In France, there are schools dedicated to training people in public finance and tax administration. These are the people you should set about to collect your taxes, not some iniquitous and corrupt private consultants.”

Several petitions have been submitted to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in the past detailing alleged fraud by some tax consultants in Lagos State. However, the EFCC has failed to invite anyone including the petitioners.

SOURCE: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/05/how-lagos-is-using-corrupt-firms-to.html

The House of Representatives yesterday directed Total Exploration and Production Nigeria (TEPNG) to refund $592million to the Federal Government.

This was sequel to the consideration of the Report of the Committee on Gas Resources on the Need to Investigate the Contract for the Upgrade of OML 58 Upgrade 1, the Execution of Obite-Ubeta-Rumuji (OUR) Pipeline and the Northern Option Pipeline Projects,.

The cash was the excess allegedly paid on the contract awarded by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS).

This was one of the recommendations in the report of the Hon. Fred Agbedi-headed House committee on Gas at the Committee of the whole yesterday.

They approved the recommendations that the excess payment of $592million should be recovered from TEPNG in consonance with the recommendations of Tabor VFM Audit Report.

“That a forensic investigative audit into the cost over-run emanating from all change orders, including $2.2 billion on OML 58 Upgrade 1, $560 million on OUR Pipeline and $528 million on NOPL Pipeline Projects be conducted.”

Similarly, the House while considering the report of the same Committee on the Need to Investigate the Contract for the Modification of the EGP 3B Production Platform following the Joint Venture Agreement between the NNPC and Chevron Nigeria Limited said:

“That a supposed entity called Diakrino Services Limited which was engaged by NNPC/NAPIMS to conduct a Value for Money (VFM) audit at the cost of $1million was not a legal entity as was confirmed by the Committee from a search at the Corporate Affairs Commission.”

The lawmakers therefore directed that the $1million awarded to Diakrino Services Limited should be paid back to the Federation Account by four workers of NNPC/NAPIMS involved in managing the contract awarded to Diakrino. They said they should also be apprehended and prosecuted for violating the Procurement Act, 2007

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Thursday revealed that the Federal Government of Nigeria received N257.76 billion from Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) in April, 2019.

The NBS disclosed this in its “FAAC April 2019 Disbursement statistics posted on its official website that the amount was Federal Government’s share of N617.57 billion disbursed to the three tiers of government for the month of April.

It further explained that the money shared by FAAC in April was generated in March, adding that states got N168.25 billion and local governments, N126.58 billion. The report said the amount disbursed comprised N446.65 billion from the Statutory Account, N92.18 billion from Valued Added Tax (VAT) and N55 billion as Good and Value Consideration.

Revenue generating agencies such as Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) received N5.12 billion, N6.15 billion and N3.87 billion as cost of revenue collections.

The report also indicated that N203.11 billion was disbursed to the consolidated revenue account during the period, and that N4.64 billion was disbursed as share of derivation and ecology, and N2.32 billion as stabilisation fund.
It added that N7.80 billion was disbursed for the development of natural resources across the country and N5.49 billion to the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA).

The Governor Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Godwin Emefiele, has expressed fears that Nigeria may slide into another recession if measures are not taken to tackle the high rate of unemployment and other economic crisis.
Emefiele disclosed this while delivering a lecture at the University of Benin titled “Beyond the Global Financial Crisis: Monetary Policy Under Global Uncertainty”.

According to the CBN boss, Monetary and Fiscal Policy Authority must rise up to the challenge to begin to think of what can be done to tackle the the situation. He said: “From some of my concluding remarks, you may have observed whether you like it or not, there is global uncertainty that will unfortunately most certainly, lead to another crisis,”

“The question could be, how are we, as Nigerians, particularly our leaders, I am talking of Monetary and Fiscal Policy Authority, how are we preparing our country for the next set of crisis?” He said “we have luckily exited recession. We have seen recession pending downward to about 18.72% in 2017 to about 11.37% today.

We see reserve moving up, exchange rate stabilizing but unfortunately, we still have issue and those issues bother on unemployment rate.” He assured that CBN will continue to take proactive approach in mitigating the likely adverse effects that may emanate from external headwinds.

cvibe2:
Anybody can say anything. How do we confirm and verify?

Do you also confirm herdsmen attack news?

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) said it met its financial obligations to the Federation Account last year by remitting N1.26 trillion as against the N1.22 trillion projected in the 2018 budget, recording a surplus of N41billion.

The Managing Director, NNPC Capital, Mr. Godwin Okonkwo, disclosed this during a presentation to the House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee on the Investigation of the Non-Remittances of Funds to the Federation Account by the corporation between July 2017 and December 2018 at the National Assembly Complex in Abuja.

A statement by NNPC explained that Okonkwo represented Group Managing Director of the Corporation, Dr. Maikanti Baru. It said though 2.3million barrels per day (mbpd) was proposed in the 2018 budget, national daily production for the period under review oscillated between 1.9mbpd to 1.89mbpd.

Baru listed the two sources of inflows into the Federation Account from the NNPC to include equity crude oil sales less cost of recovery from the Joint Venture cash call arrears and domestic crude less cost recovery, adding that the JV cash call arrears were being efficiently managed now to ensure steady inflows to the Federation Account.

Baru said: “The current management of NNPC ensures that it contributes to the cost of the production of crude oil and gas in the upstream sector to avoid a repeat of the mistakes of the past. If we had made cash call payments in the past, the arrears that we are liquidating now would not have arisen. The current situation creates a win-win scenario for the country. The NNPC is strategically saving for the rainy day to make a better future for all of us by liquidating the arrears.”

He noted that the corporation on a regular and sustained basis balanced up with the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) and the JV cash calls in order to make sure that the future generations do not suffer from the legacy debt. He dismissed the allegations of Commissioners of Finance of under-remittances by the Corporation, adding that the NNPC was a going concern that met financial obligations to its various stakeholders.

SOURCE: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/05/nnpc-remits-n126-trillion-to-federation.html

The ACCA Exams will take place across the world between 3-7 June 2019. Below is a comprehensive Timetable For the Examination.

3 JUNE MONDAY
 Audit and Assurance (AA)
 Advanced Audit and Assurance (AAA)

4 JUNE TUESDAY
 Taxation (TX)
 Advanced Taxation (ATX)
 Strategic Business leader (SBL)

5 JUNE WEDNESDAY
 Performance Management (PM)
 Advanced Performance Management (APM)

6 JUNE THURSDAY
 Financial Reporting (FR)
 Strategic Business Reporting (SBR)
 Technical Role Simulation (TRS)

7 JUNE FRIDAY
 Financial Management (FM)
 Advanced Financial Management (AFM)
 Corporate and Business Law (LW)

Please note that AB, MA, FA and LW examinations (variants English and Global) are available as on-demand CBE only. All other exams and variants are available during this session.

Centre complaints / Mitigating circumstances closing date
Must be received by 14 June 2019

Exam withdrawals
Withdrawal requests must be received by 9 June 2019

June 2019 Exam results
Exam results will be released 15 July 2019

SOURCE: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/05/acca-timetable-for-june-2019-examination.html

AS the first term of President Muhammadu Buhari winds up within the next nine days, it is understandable that Nigerians are looking back at the passing four years to see if (and where) the “change” the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, promised showed up beyond mere propaganda.

While the regime’s performance in the economic sector can at best be described as tepid, two federal institutions stood out by dint of their internal innovative initiatives beyond the general template of the regime’s economic agenda as contained in the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, ERGP. These were the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, under its Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele and the Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS, under its Executive Chairman, Dr. William Babatunde Fowler.

Emefiele, who has emerged as the first CBN Governor to be appointed for a second five-year term since the return of democracy in Nigeria in 1999, earned his place in the Buhari administration through the highly successful Anchor Borrowers Programme for agriculture (especially rice production). He also stabilised the Naira without compromising the steady growth of our external reserves.

Fowler’s FIRS, on the other hand, has met the expectations of many Nigerians that he should take the “magic” he performed at the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service, LIRS, to Abuja. The FIRS has now become the Federal Government’s dependable organ for the steady accretion of non-oil, tax-based revenue to service the Federation Account.

Fowler halted the instability that pervaded the FIRS since the tenure of Mrs. Ifueko Omoigui-Okauru ended in 2012. Former President Goodluck Jonathan had replaced her with Alhaji Kabir Mashi. But in March 2015, Mashi was replaced by Mr. Samuel Odugbesan who remained in acting capacity until he was replaced by Fowler.

Whereas under Fowler, the LIRS increased from N600 million in 1999 to N20 billion per month in 2015, the FIRS moved from below N2 trillion per annum in 2015 to initial N3 trillion in 2016, N4 trillion in 2017 and N5.3 trillion in 2018, which is more than half of the 2019 Federal budget. In addition, through the Tax Identification Number, TIN, initiative, 45 million taxpayers have now been brought into the federal tax net. With the steady implementation of the ongoing innovations, the future of taxation assuming the lion’s share of federal revenue in place of oil is bright indeed.

The Buhari regime has done a great job towards putting taxation in its proper place in our national economy. Indeed, Nigerian taxpayers can now genuinely look forward to priding themselves as the primary providers of government revenue for good governance and development. This will eventually augur well for accountability, safeguard against corruption and promote zero-tolerance for government ineptitude. We hope efforts will be made to foster continuity and consolidation in this sector.

MTN Nigeria listing on the Nigeria Stock Exchange (NSE) is the best thing happening to the business and Financial world in Nigeria right now, so i am going to discuss about some factors to consider before buying a company's share.

When you buy the shares of a company, you automatically buy into that company. You are buying into both the assets and liabilities of the company.

Therefore, it will be wise to properly consider and research into the company before you invest your hard earned money. You will find information about the activities of the company online if it is a reputable company. Factors like the profitability of their business activities, the likelihood of growth and expansion and their stake holder relations history are points to consider. You should also look through their financial statements and annual reports.

The important points highlighted below should guide your decision making when buying a company's share:
1. EARNINGS
Consider the company’s earnings over a period of time. The number stated must always be higher than the previous year.
2. SALES
The number stated here must also be higher than previous years. If they have not made more sales, their profitability and growth are in question.
3. DEBT
The number stated here must never be more than the stated assets. It must always be lower than the previous year as well.
4. EQUITY
This refers to the value of shares offered by a company. This figure must always be higher than the year before.

If the company you are interested in buying their shares is scales through this four-point test, it is safe to invest your money. Your investment is likely to yield satisfactorily.

SOURCE: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/05/mtn-listing-4-things-to-consider-before.html

Investors appeared to be willing to pay more than the 10 per cent daily premium on the share price of MTN Nigeria Communications Plc. While the share price of the telecommunications company rose again by 10 per cent at the weekend to N108.90 at the open market at Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), investors went into off-market negotiations to buy the stock at N125 per share.

A transaction note at the weekend indicated that nine deals were struck for 16.26 million ordinary shares of 2.0 kobo each of MTN Nigeria at N125 per share at the negotiated dealing window of the NSE.

The negotiated deals were struck at 14.78 per cent premium to the closing price of N108.90. Under the rules at the open market at the NSE, the maximum daily allowable price change is set at 10 per cent.

As off-market, negotiated cross deals, it means that the deals were not subjected to the dynamics of price discovery for the particular period. Off-market trade implied that the deals were previously negotiated and only sealed through the transfer portal of the Exchange.
The negotiated cross deal platform of the Exchange is a special-purpose trading platform that is meant for voluminous transaction. By the cross deal, it implies that the buyer and the seller had been prearranged and the transfer at the stock market was a mere perfection of the agreement between the two. The negotiated cross deal allows the parties to the deal to close the deal at reduced cost.

MTN Nigeria Communications rose by the maximum daily allowable price gain of 10 per cent on Friday, chalking up a whooping N201.47 billion capital gains in second day of trading at the stock market. MTN Nigeria on Thursday listed by way of introduction 20.35 billion ordinary shares at N90 per share.

MTN Nigeria’s share price, which rose by 10 per cent or N9 on Thursday, also rose by the same maximum percentage on Friday, adding N9.90 to close now at N108.9 per share. With the ongoing rally, MTN Nigeria has gained N384.62 billion in two days, pushing its market value from initial listing value of N1.83 trillion to N2.22 trillion. The off-market deal valued MTN Nigeria at N2.54 trillion, some N400 billion below Dangote Cement, the most capitalised quoted company. Many analysts believed that MTN Nigeria will overtake Dangote Cement as the most capitalised company at the Nigerian stock market this week.

SOURCE: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/05/mtn-nigeria-sells-at-n125-per-share-in.html

Accountant Salary Structure In Nigeria 2019 https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/05/accountant-salary-structure-in-nigeria.html?m=1

The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) says it will soon start collection of Value Added Tax (VAT) on online transactions.

The Chairman of the agency, Mr Babatunde Fowler, made this known in an interview with Journalists in New York on Saturday. Mr Fowler said: “soon, we will direct banks to impose VAT on online transactions for purchases of goods and services. “This is not something new; it actually should be in existence.

“We will certainly follow up to make sure that every VAT that is due to be collected is collected and remitted.” He further explained that the move was part of measures by FIRS to meet its N8 trillion revenue target for 2019.
Fowler said the agency had started taking action against companies and businesses that refused to embrace the Federal Government’s tax amnesty programme.

According to him, FIRS hopes to generate between N750 billion and N1 trillion from the clampdown, which includes closure of defaulters’ bank accounts. “We are going after everybody. I am sure you have heard that we have placed lien on some accounts of defaulters that have a billion naira turnover annually. “So certainly, we are not leaving anyone out of the tax net,” he said.

Officially known as the Voluntary Asset and Income Declaration Scheme, the tax amnesty programme was launched in 2017. It gave tax defaulters a one-year period of grace to declare and settle their unpaid taxes.

There have been complaints by some taxpayers of being wrongly targeted by FIRS in the clampdown. Asked to comment on that, Fowler admitted, blaming it on “administrative error,” arising from the huge number of accounts involved.

“Well, there is certainly one or two instances where we made administrative error, but when you are looking at over 50,000 accounts, there is a tendency that sometimes an error might be made. “For those that we made errors on, I wrote them personally apologising and of course we lifted the lien on their accounts.”

On plans by the Joint Tax Board to raise the country’s tax population to 45 million, Fowler said the agency was relying on multiple information sources. These, according to him, include the country’s Bank Verification Number database and sister agencies with relevant information.

SOURCE: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/05/firs-set-to-impose-vat-on-online.html

According to the Chairman of The Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS, Mr Babatunde Fowler, FIRS generated N1.5 trillion revenue in the first quarter (Q1) of 2019.

Fowler Revealed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in New York at the weekend. He said the amount included revenue from non-oil taxes that were 11% higher than what the agency realised from that sector in Q1 of 2018.

“In the first quarter (of 2019), what I will say is that in the non-oil sector, we generated 11% higher than what we generated in 2018.
“Basically, we have generated about N1.5 trillion,” Fowler told NAN on the sidelines of a high-level meeting on illicit financial flows hosted by the United Nations General Assembly. NAN reports that the first quarter (Q1) figure also represents 18.7% of the agency’s total revenue target of N8 trillion for 2019.

Fowler said the target, described by economy watchers as quite ambitious, was realistic with the cooperation of tax payers, among other factors.

He said, “It is quite realistic as long as we have the cooperation of tax payers in addition to deployment of technology. “We have already started the enforcement of over 50,000 accounts that have banking turnover of 100 billion and above that have not filed their returns.”

The FIRS boss also spoke of plans by the agency to surpass the over N1 trillion it realised from Valued Added Tax (VAT) in 2018. (NAN)

The Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Services, FIRS, Mr Babatunde Fowler, has blamed ignorance of taxation rules for the incessant controversies between taxpayers and government.

Mr Fowler, made this known at the KPMG Tax Breakfast Seminar in Lagos, themed, ‘Tax Controversy and Dispute Resolution’. He counselled taxpayers to consult experts in tax issues to avoid over-payment, noting, however, that FIRS does tax refund when necessary. He stated: “The cause of incessant tax controversies between the government and taxpayers are majorly as a result of ignorance of tax administration on the side of taxpayers. Corporate bodies need to take advantage of tax education which FIRS is embarking on across the country using different communications media.

“Taxpayers need to query the source and any observed errors or omissions in tax letters/statements from tax authority. No one has the right to bully any taxpayers in any circumstance.
“We have our Joint Tax Board, JTB, across states whose rectification with any organization is binding by other JTB across the federation. So to avoid multiplicity of tax charges, you must know the law permitting such tax; you are even free to decline an invitation for Joint Tax Audit. Still, it is better you even go to Tax Appeal Tribunal (TAT) where necessary.”

In his remark, Mr Wole Abayomi, KPMG Partner and Head, Tax, Regulatory and People Service, said: “The constantly changing economic landscape requires governments at all levels to develop frameworks that will provide a competitive tax landscape for business, effectively accelerate tax revenues, proactively curb tax evasion and create opportunities for the country’s teeming population.

“A situation where the last time Companies Income Tax Act (CITA) and Value Added Tax (VAT) Act were reviewed was 12 years ago leaves much to be desired, thus, there is an urgent need for government to reform our outdated tax laws to reflect current economic realities. “An efficient way of doing this is to return to the practice of enacting a Finance Act soon after the passage of the annual federal budget through which our tax laws can be constantly reviewed in accordance with global best practices.”

SOURCE: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/05/ignorance-is-major-cause-of-tax.html

MTN Nigeria Communications Plc has just listed its shares on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), rallying N184 billion gain in first day of trading. The NSE admitted, by way of introduction, 20.35 billion ordinary shares of MTN Nigeria Communications at N90 per share.

The shares, which were listed on the Premium Board of NSE immediately rose by the highest daily allowance price change of 10 per cent or N9 to close at N99 per share. National Council President NSE, Otunba Abimbola Ogunbanjo, said: “We are particularly pleased that MTN Nigeria has joined the prestigious club of companies listed on our Premium Board with this landmark transaction, which will differentiate it as a professionally run telecommunications company with high standards, having met The NSE’s listing criteria.

“A Premium Board listing is a sign of commitment to strong corporate governance, excellence, professionalism, efficiency in service delivery and providing increased returns to shareholders. “It is our expectation that the MTN Nigeria listing, which is the NSE’s 2nd largest, will encourage other telecommunication companies to list their shares on The Exchange, thereby opening the sector up to cheaper, long term capital that will boost innovation and development.”

Chief Executive Officer NSE, Mr. Oscar Onyema, said: “We are delighted to welcome MTN Nigeria to the Exchange. Today’s listing is a promising development in the country’s telecommunications sector and we encourage other players in the sector to explore the different opportunities in the capital markets for raising long term capital.

“As a listing platform of choice, today’s listing will add to our bouquet of diverse investment offerings to the public. “Having MTN Nigeria listed in our market is a testament of The Exchange’s commitment to building a dynamic and inclusive market and creating channels for sustainable investment. This listing will promote liquidity for MTN Nigeria and enhance its value.”

SOURCE: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/05/mtn-nigeria-gains-n184b-in-first-day-of.html

An apex Accounting body in Nigeria, The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), has praised the pioneering roles played by the pan-African conglomerate, Dangote Group, in shaping the economy of Nigeria, for the benefits of Nigerians and other African countries.

The Institute praised the management of the Group for the giant strides it has been undertaking in manufacturing business to make the country self-sufficient in a number of commodities that would have otherwise made the nation spend huge foreign exchange on import.

ICAN President, Alhaji Razak Jayeola, made these statements when he led the executive members of the body to the Lagos head office of Dangote to pay a courtesy visit. He noted that the Company has become a pride of Africa in its trail blazing efforts in manufacturing businesses like Cement and Sugar, which had hitherto cost Nigeria huge foreign exchange to import for which the nation is now self-sufficient, and even now exporting.

Jayeola also alluded to the 650,000 bpd refinery currently under construction, which will also save Nigeria foreign exchange presently being spent on importation of petroleum products. The Institute particularly praised the ingenuity of the management led by Mr. Olakunle Alake, saying “It shows from all indication that he has skills laced with strategy with which he has been steering the company to profitability.

“Dangote Group is a pride of Africa, its contribution to job creation is unquantifiable Nigeria has achieved self-sufficiency in Cement and sugar through the efforts of the company Nigerians can’t thank you enough”, the ICAN boss stated. He also explained some of the challenges being faced by the Institute, and efforts being made by his leadership to turn things around. He disclosed that the institute has commenced stakeholders fora to address these challenges. Jayeola explained that his leadership is looking towards the application of information technology for accounting purposes, and that an Accounting Technology Conference has been scheduled as a start up towards the use of technology in Accounting.

The Group Managing Director of Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), Olakunle Alake, who was in company some management members as well as some staff who are ICAN members, showered accolades on the ICAN leadership for its foresight and orderly manner it organises Institute. He explained that DIL is a quality organization that is always in search of quality which was why it company has a large number of ICAN members as staff. He said: “In Dangote, we are always trying to grow the economy and we believe that for the economy to grow, you must create jobs.

A key element to be a producing nation, we must create a cycle of wealth. That is why we invest and re-invest. “In Dangote, we don’t keep our dividends we use it for more investments, any nation that must grow must create jobs, that is why we touch people’s lives positively, we create wealth through job creation.” Alake challenged the government to look into wealth creation for Nigerians through massive job creation.

SOURCE: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/05/ican-lauds-dangote-for-job-creation-in.html

The Institute of Chartered Accountants Of Nigeria (ICAN) has certified a total of 24 Universities, 14 Polytechnics, 3 Colleges of Education and 19 Tuition Houses and they have been presented with accreditation and recognition certificates.

The presentation ceremony was held last week in Lagos, Nigeria by ICAN President Alhaji Razak Jaiyeola who said the Institute’s decision to accredit institutions was informed by the need to sustain the high quality of ICAN examinations and ensure that students are adequately prepared for the different stages of the exams.

“This initiative that started in 1972 is also ICAN’s strategy for quality control and building of competent professionals capable of contributing significantly to development of the country”, he said. He explained that the move was part of efforts to address the major causes of students’ poor performances in ICAN’s examinations.

He said that ICAN Accreditation Certificate as an endorsement of such institutions’ capabilities to provide qualitative training for would-be Chartered Accountants as the recipients have successfully gone through stringent evaluation criteria and have been adjudged adequate for the provision of top notch training programmes for ICAN students.

He assured that ICAN would continue to assist all Accredited/Recognised institutions in their efforts to achieve the noble objective of producing well-trained candidates that would achieve success in our Institute’s qualifying professional examinations. He informed that visitations to the accredited institutions are conducted periodically to ensure they do not compromise the set standards.

SOURCE: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/05/ican-issues-accreditation-certificates.html

The Institute of Chartered Accountants Of Nigeria (ICAN) has inducted 1,631 newly qualified Chartered Accountants and six (6) Registered Accountants thus bringing the total number of professional members of the prestigious Accounting Institute to 48,496.

At the 63rd annual Induction ceremony for new members which was held in Lagos last week (8th & 9th May, 2019), ICAN President Alhaji Razak Jaiyeola, FCA, advised the new inductees to constantly update themselves on the emerging disruptive technologies that are redefining business models across professions, such as Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Machine Learning, Internet of Things among others.

He described the induction as the highpoint of years of hard work and dedication and asked the inductees to continue in the same spirit in order to find relevance in the accounting profession. He also invited them to seize the opportunities of the institute’s Mandatory Continuous Professional Education (MCPE) programmes to improve their skills and competencies for continued relevance in the profession.

According to the ICAN President, the admission of the candidates into the Accountancy Profession is an expression of ICAN’s satisfaction that they have imbibed the ethics of the profession premised on trust, integrity and exemplary conduct and are ready to observe them at all times.

He admonished them to abide by the profession’s Rules of Professional Conduct and warned that the Institute would not tolerate any form of professional misconduct and was ready to give out appropriate sanctions for ethical infractions. Jaiyeola also enjoined the new chartered accountants to join at least one of the Institute’s seven Faculties to enable them specialize and become experts in their preferred field of accounting.

SOURCE: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/05/ican-inducts-1631-new-members.html

List Of ICAN Exam Centres In Lagos https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2018/10/list-of-ican-exam-centres-in-lagos.html?m=1

A major provider of tax accounting software and cloud services in the United States of America, Wolters Kluwer, has been hit by malware. As a result of this, the many financial software services they offer to customers across the country have been down since Monday, May 6.

The software provided by Wolters Kluwer is extremely popular in the US accounting sector. Some of their users include all of the top 100 American accounting firms, as well as 90% of the top banks worldwide, and 90% of Fortune 500 companies.

This malware attack comes at an especially vulnerable time when many accounting firms (and their clients) are intending to file their taxes. With their primary accounting systems offline, they won’t be able to do so, or at least not with Wolters Kluwer software.

However, it’s not as simple as just using different accounting software. Wolters Kluwer also provides cloud services to their clients, which means that necessary client financial data is stored in their servers, and inaccessible by the accounting firms during this outage.

Since the attack began Monday morning, Wolters Kluwer took many of its systems offline to slow the spread of the malware. According to representatives, they have since been working non-stop to try to eliminate the malware and bring their systems back online. They have contacted authorities and third-party forensic teams to investigate the attack.

“We’re working around the clock to restore service, and we want to provide [clients] the assurance that we can restore service safely,” said Elizabeth Queen, vice president of risk management for Wolters Kluwer, to CNBC .


"We’ve made very good progress so far.”
However, end-users have still not been able to access their tax documents that are stored in Wolters Kluwers cloud servers. The many systems that Wolters Kluwer took offline on Monday include the customer services lines that end users have relied on to get info from the software provider.

When a backup customer service number was finally provided, users were told that there is no estimated window in which the services will be fully restored. For the time being, thousands of accountants at numerous firms across the US are being expected to wait and see.

SOURCE: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/05/malware-attack-hits-wolters-kluwer-us.html

This is to inform all ATSWA graduates who passed the final examination before or after the March 2019 diet of ATSWA examination that Registration for Induction is in progress.
DATE: June 10-11, 2019.
TIME: 8:00am prompt.
VENUE: ICAN Centre, plot 12, Kofo Kasumu, Lakeview estate, Phase 1 Amuwo Odofin, Lagos.
INDUCTION FEE: N24,500

SOURCE: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/05/ican-releases-date-for-50th-aatwa.html

SEE Procedures For Online Registration For ICAN AATWA Induction Ceremony 2019 https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/05/procedures-for-online-registration-for.html?m=1

The school is not in the north.

There are plenty of traps candidates can fall into during a job interview. We outline some of these pitfalls and how to avoid them. There are a multitude of invisible traps that you can fall into during an interview, but with planning and preparation they can be avoided.

For example, during a job interview you are highly likely to describe your strengths and weaknesses. When asked, it is important not to try to disguise your strengths as weaknesses.
‘Don’t fall into the trap of providing vague responses or disguising your strengths as weaknesses,’ says Phil Sheridan, senior managing director at Robert Half UK. ‘Everyone is human and, as such, they have flaws. Share a weakness and your personal or professional development effort to improve that weakness and turn it into a strength.

‘This will leave the hiring manager impressed with your level of self-awareness, and your commitment to your continual learning and the investment you are willing to make to develop your own career.'

NERVES
In an interview environment, your nerves can sometimes get the better of you and you may want to respond with the first thing that comes to mind, but try to remain composed.

The interviewer will be basing their decision on your answers, so make sure you provide the most appropriate responses to highlight why your skills and experience fits the role. Being paid fairly is important in every job. However, broaching this topic with the interviewer early in an interview can be viewed as bad form. Make sure the job is a good fit first. Is this a job you can be successful at? Will you enjoy the role? Is the company a good cultural fit for you?

Once you have answered ‘yes’ to these questions, then it’s more appropriate to make sure the salary aligns with your expectations and your research on what the job should pay.
‘Let the interviewer initiate the topic. If you can sense that the interview is approaching the end and salary has not been discussed, it’s acceptable to say something like “I’m really interested in this job and believe it’s one I can be very successful at. I look forward to the next step in the interview process. As I continue to research the company and this role, could you provide me with an idea of the compensation range so that I have a full picture of the opportunity?”
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
As we know, first impressions count. Starting off with a bad first impression is almost impossible to unwind. Paying attention to the smaller details of your appearance will go a long way.

Trainees should always dress smartly when attending interview, even if they won't be wearing a suit in the workplace should they get the job. ‘Ensuring you are tidy and well-groomed is always a good idea – it might not get you the job, but failing to present yourself appropriately can certainly cost you the opportunity,’

Try to arrive 10 or 15 minutes early, but not more. If you get to the office earlier than that, it could show that you place greater importance on your time than the hiring manager’s.

Also remember to mind your manners in an interview, not only with your potential manager but also other members of staff. The hiring manager may not be happy to hear that you treated their assistant rudely or weren’t polite to the receptionist on arrival.

‘Everyone you encounter, from the person in the elevator to the receptionist, is someone who could potentially weigh in on the hiring decision,’ concludes Sheridan. ‘Just as treating the waiter rudely at a restaurant creates a bad impression, being discourteous or abrupt with a company’s receptionist or office staff can reveal character – or lack of it – in job applicants.’

SOURCE: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/05/traps-candidates-can-fall-into-during.html

A former Governor of Lagos State and current Minister of Power, Works and Housing of Nigeria, Babatunde Fashola has answered those criticising the Nigerian Government for borrowing money.

While addressing journalists in Ilorin, the capital of Kwara State, he asked such people to provide an alternative to sourcing funds. “Those who say we shouldn’t borrow must have an alternative answer to where we will get the money," he said. "Those who don’t support borrowing, are they ready to support increased taxes?”

He blamed the slow pace of works on the federal roads across the country on the paucity of funds. He went on to defend the decision of the government to borrow monies to fund its various projects in the country.

“Where do we get the money,?” Fashola queried. “It is not from President Muhammadu Buhari’s salary or the National Assembly’s salary; we are talking about quantifiable, substantial billions of naira that need to be spent to pay. “That is how you move money around the economy because once you pay the contractors, they order sand, cement, iron rods. They don’t keep all those things. Where the money stops, supply stops.”

Fashola went ahead to assure the public that the government would continue to improve the economic wellbeing of the people through infrastructural development in the country.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) yesterday asked bank customers to report any commercial bank that rejects dirty, soiled, worn out, defaced or mutilated naira notes for sanction.

CBN Director, Currency Operations Department Mrs. Pricilla Eleje, passed the message to bank customers during the launch of the Clean Note Policy and Banknote Fitness Guidelines in Lagos. She said the apex bank will soon circulate the guidelines on clean note policy to banks, which will also be made available to bank customers for them to know when any lender is not complying.

Eleje said the regulator will regularly carry out spot checks on bank branches, based on complaints from customers, which will serve as guide on where to go. “Complaints from customers on any bank not accepting dirty notes will serve as a trigger for the CBN to know where to go and penalty for defaulting banks. There should also be a banner in every banking hall for customers to understand the Note Policy and Banknote Fitness Guidelines and also their rights as stipulated in it,” she said.
The CBN Director, also said the apex bank is planning mobile courts to try currency counterfeiters to serve as a deterrent to others.
She said the CBN will continue to sensitize the public on the basic security features of the notes, the dangers of sale of the Naira, and proper handling habits of the banknotes by the public. She said that any abuse of the Naira is a criminal offence, punishable under the CBN Act of 2007.

CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, said that currency management is vital to people’s daily lives because despite the improvements in electronic payments system, banknotes remain predominant for payment and settlement of commercial transactions in Nigeria.

“The effective use of these documents by relevant stakeholders would ensure that banknotes in circulation are clean and of high quality. Characteristics that are key to sustaining public confidence in the National currency,” Emefiele, who was represented by CBN Deputy Governor, Operations, Folashodun Shonubi, said.

He added: “The CBN has registered eight companies to carry out cash-in-transit and two cash processing companies to operate in Nigeria. Deposit money banks (DMBs) are expected to patronize only these registered companies for Cash-in-Transit and sorting services”.

He said the CBN has also put in place strategies to enable direct disbursement of lower banknotes to various market associations and merchants through their respective DMBs adding that the intervention commenced in Abuja and has been extended to Lagos, Kano, Enugu, Umuahia, Yola, Jos, Gombe, Asaba, Ibadan, Kastina, Uyo, Minna and Port Harcourt.

SOURCE: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/05/report-banks-rejecting-dirty-naira.html

The president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), Mr Razak Jaiyeola, has charged members of the institute to be technologically informed and put their knowledge on current Accounting Technologies into use.

Mr Jaiyeola, while speaking at the opening ceremony of the institute’s two-day technology summit yesterday in Lagos, said accountants were expected to be vast in the deployment of emerging technologies into their operations as accountants, both in private and public organizations.

He further said that as Professional accountants, our roles are now beyond crunching financial figures with outdated methods. We must be in the vanguard of creatively destroying existing models and develop new ones that would be both efficient and effective for the prompt discharge of our responsibilities to clients. We must update our knowledge, skills and competencies constantly in these emerging disruptive technologies. This is what would safeguard our continued relevance in the highly competitive global and digitally-driven market,” he said.

He also stated that the ACCOUNTEKS summit is part of ICAN’s interventions at making chartered accountants and other professionals future-ready because failure to keep pace with the disruptive technological trend portends danger of extinction for any business entity or individual.

SOURCE: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/04/ican-charges-members-on-use-of-modern.html

funmijoyb:
Drake ft Wizkid one dance won Grammy award.

Was only nominated for Grammys

Wale Tinubu (Oando) - N568m
Augustine Avuru (Seplat) - N483m
Baker Magunda (Guinness) - N461m
Joseph Makoju (Dangote) - N429m
Segun Agbaje (GTB) - N384m
Yaw Nsarkoh (Unilever) - N330m
Mauricio Alarcon (Nestle) - N210m Akin Akinfemiwa (Forte Oil) - N191m Jordi B. Bel (Nig Breweries) - N190m Kennedy Uzoka (UBA) - N139m Amir Shamsi (Cadbury) - N128m Peter Amangbo (Zenith) - N125m Urum Kalu Eke (FBN Holdings) - N121m Herbert Wigwe (Access) - N85m

VIA BusinessDay

Nigerians may be showing immense interest for entertainment as N758.1 million was realised from movie sales in weekends from January-March 2019, according to statistics from the Cinema Exhibitors Association of Nigeria (CEAN) website.

CEAN is an association of cinema owners, operators and managers incorporated by the Corporate Affairs Commission of Nigeria and is meant to promote and protect the value of cinema exhibition in Nigeria.

A breakdown of the CEAN figure for January showed that in four weekends, the total gross of the top 20 movies was N289.6 million and they were viewed by 211,801 people; for February, it recorded N178.7 million from 133,132 people, and for March it was N292.5 million viewed by 211,007.

Movie ticket prices usually range from N1,000 – N3000 across cinemas, depending on the packages that come with it like complementary drinks and popcorn. The major film distributors across cinemas in Nigeria are FilmOne, Silverbird Film, Genesis Deluxe cinemas and Metro Classic.

Gbolahan Ologunro, an equity research analyst at Lagos-based CSL Stockbrokers, said Nigerians had always placed a premium on entertainment despite the fact that disposable income remained pressured.

Yinka Ademuwagun, a macroeconomic analyst at United Capital, said, “It is noteworthy that they are spending that much on leisure. And this is given that most of these figures are from urban areas where you will find cinemas. This says a lot about the movie industry.”

Recently, watching movies in cinemas seems to be the new ‘thing in town’ and this is aside from its entertainment values, movie-going is quickly becoming a lifestyle in which people go to the cinemas with their loved ones and friends to see movies and relax.

“The cinemas have a bigger space to enjoy the latest movies with loved ones while relaxing,” Ruth Udemba said, while expressing her love for the cinema. Usually, people go to watch foreign movies (Hollywood) than home ones (Nollywood) but recently, people are beginning to appreciate the home ones.

For example, Chief Daddy, Up North, Mo’ Dorisa, Hire a Woman, The Big fat Lie, the and She, were some of the top charting Nollywood films for the three month period. Movie producers have found cinema premiering as a means of escaping the gins of movie pirates. Also the Nigerian movie industry has been churning out quality movies worthy of people’s time and money, which makes them cinema-worthy.

“I usually download the latest foreign movies because they are accessible and have good quality but when it comes to the home movies, I watch it at the cinema. It is better enjoyed there,” Shola Awoniyi said. A new cinema era began in 2004 with the launch of a series of modern cinema houses by the Silverbird Group and since then launch of the group, new cinemas like Ozone, Filmhouse and Genesis Deluxe have launched and are playing important roles in the evolution of the Nigerian film industry

SOURCE: https://www.trendingaccounting.com/2019/04/ican-conditions-for-renewal-of-expired.html