LATEST UPDATES
Card-image-cap

Business | Frauds & Scandals

Ghana Revenue Authority Moves to Enforce $773m Fine on MTN Ghana

Jan 18, 2023   •   by Fakoyejo Olalekan   •   Source: Prime Business   •   eye-icon 255 views

Ghanaian tax administrator, Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), has slammed MTN with GHS8,209,603,842.14 ($773 million based on dollar rate) fine for failing to declare the true state of its revenue.

 

It was gathered that the tax authority conducted an audit of MTN’s turnover between 2014 to 2018 and discovered that the sister company to MTN Nigeria allegedly under-declared its revenue, a decision that reduces the tax paid to the Ghanaian government.

 

What you need to know about MTN Nigeria

Recall that MTN Nigeria had also been fined $2 billion by the Nigerian government for tax liabilities dating between 2007 and 2017.

 

The fine was later settled out of court after MTN denied the allegations made by Nigerian Attorney General, Abubakar Malami. 

 

READ ALSO Black Market's Pound Rate Causing Gains, Loses For Nigerians

MTN Nigeria was involved in other violations, such as offering service to unregistered subscribers despite the industry regulator’s warning. MTN was fined $1.5 billion. 

 

The Nigerian subsidiary also paid a $53 million fine after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) accused MTN of illegally repatriating $8.13 billion to South Africa, the home of its parent company, MTN Group. 

 

MTN dragged into another tax issue in Ghana

MTN disputed the claim by the Ghanaian authority, stating that the firm paid its taxes as required, but the tax administrator alleged that MTN under-declared about 30 per cent of its revenues between 2014 and 2018. 

 

Ghana Revenue Authority said it used a new methodology based on Call Data Records (CDR), recharges, and other data to carry out the revenue assessment through a third-party consultant. 

 

READ ALSO Budget Office Says Buhari’s Administration Wasting Resources

MTN protested the assessment, which was conducted in 2019, as a result, both parties agreed to employ an independent third-party consultant to review the report by the consultant hired by the Ghanaian government in 2021. 

 

The telecommunication company said it was unaware of the new methodology. Following the completion of the review by the independent third-party consultant, it released a report stating it doesn’t the conclusion reached by the Ghanaian authority on the revenue of MTN. 

 

Despite the statement from the independent third-party consultant, the tax administrator in Ghana went ahead to fine MTN $773 million.

 

Credit:

The post Ghanaian Gov’t Moves To Enforce $773 million Fine On MTN first appeared in Prime Business on January 17, 2023.

 

 

 

Related items.

Get the App

apple-store  play-store

Connect with us


Proshare is a professional practice focused on delivering research and information services to bridge the gap between investors and markets; by delivery on credible, reliable, and timely engagements through the following areas — Impact Research, Market Intelligence, Strategic Advisory, Stakeholder Relations & Digital Media.