The Nigerian Government has withdrawn a $2 billion tax demand against South Africa’s MTN Group, saying it has referred the case to the tax and customs authorities.
The firm was accused of non-payment of taxes relating to the import of equipment and payments to foreign suppliers from 2007 to 2017, a case that has continued to discourage foreign investors from the country.
Reuters reports that after the announcement to withdraw the demand, the telecommunication firm’s share value rose by more than 5%.
However, this is not the first row that MTN is having in Nigeria. In 2015, the communications regulator handed MTN a $5.2 billion fine for failing to disconnect unregistered SIM cards. In 2018, also, the central bank asked MTN to return $8.1 billion that it had illegally sent abroad.
MTN Group Limited is a South African multinational mobile telecommunications company, operating in many African, European and Asian countries. Its head office is in Johannesburg. As of 30 June 2016, MTN recorded 232.6 million subscribers, making it the eighth largest mobile network operator in the world, and the largest in Africa.
Active in over 20 countries, one-third of the company‘s revenue comes from Nigeria, where it holds about 35% market share.
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