First Bank

Tuesday, August 30, 2022

Kenyan court froze Flutterwave's Ksh400.6 million ($3.3 million) account over money laundering allegations


A Kenyan court has frozen Ksh400.6 million ($3.3 million) in accounts belonging to Nigerian payment company, Flutterwave, over allegations of money laundering and card fraud. The court granted the Asset Recovery Agency’s (ARA) application on August 25 to prevent Flutterwave from transferring or withdrawing the funds in three bank accounts, including two in UBA and one in Access Bank; and 19 Safaricom M-Pesa paybill numbers. 

A recurring theme in the allegations laid against Flutterwave by the ARA is the company’s involvement in card fraud and money laundering. In July,  the ARA was granted a court order to freeze Sh6.2 billion ($59.2 million) scattered in 62 bank accounts belonging to Flutterwave and seven other companies, on similar grounds.

Lion mauls man to death in Ghana zoo


A lion at Ghana's Accra Zoo mauled a man to death after he entered its enclosure, the government said in a statement.

A security official on routine patrol noticed a middle-aged man had climbed over the tall mesh fence enclosing a lion, a lioness and two cubs around noon on Sunday (August 28).

His motivation has yet to be determined.

Friday, August 26, 2022

US to sentence Hushpuppi September 21


The United States Attorney’s Office for Central District of California, Los Angeles, has confirmed that Internet fraudster, Ramon Abbas, popularly known as Hushpuppi, will be sentenced on September 21, 2022.

This was disclosed to Channels Television via email by the court’s Director of Media Relations, Thom Mrozek, on Friday.

Hushpuppi’s sentence date had been moved three times since his conviction in 2021. Valentine’s February 14 date was first chosen for his sentencing before it was postponed to July 11, and now September 21.

Hushpuppi pleaded guilty to a $1.1m fraud last year.

How Union Bank Staff Colluded With 5-Man Fraud Gang To Defraud The Bank Of Depositors’ N1.6bn


Union Bank of Nigeria Plc has lost a whopping sum of N1, 626, 139, 795, 12 billion Depositors’ money to an elusive five-man fraud syndicate.

The fraud syndicate, allegedly in connivance with some high-ranking staff of the bank were said to be three Lebanese and two Nigerians, who have fled the country.

However, Union Bank is hoping to recover the loot and bring the fraudsters to book. 

To this end, they have approached the Force Criminal Investigation Department ForceCID, Alagbon-Ikoyi Lagos to report the matter.

Thursday, August 25, 2022

AITEO CEO, Benedict Peters, earned $292m from corrupt contracts in 4 years – Court papers


Fresh papers from the Crown Court sitting in Southwark, London, have detailed how Aiteo Group President, Mr. Benedict Peters, made an estimated sum of US$292,157,683.65 in benefits from allegedly corruptly obtained oil contracts over a four-year period.

The contracts were said to be part of the multi-billion dollars scam linked to former minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke in which companies linked to Peters and others were awarded juicy offshore contracts in lieu of which they paid out bribes in cash, properties and luxury goods to the fugitive minister.

Peters who is named as the arrowhead in the sleazy oil deals with Alison-Madueke was also said to have paid out not less than £10 million to Alison-Madueke over a period of three years from 2011 to 2014. Documents seen by our reporter said the money was spent “by way of high value goods, property purchases, payment of school fees and payment to the charity of Alison-Madueke’s brother.”

The document listed 12 items with dates of payment, value of item and details for the payment.

For instance, according to court papers, on April 15, 2011, the sum of £2,800,000.00 was spent by Peters to purchase property at 58 Harley House by Rosewood Investments. On March 29, 2011 the sum of £3,750,000.00 was used to purchase Flat 5, Park View by Collinwood Limited. On July 11, 2011, £1,839,757.20 was recorded as “payment from Peters into Collinwood Limited account for the purchase of Collinwood.”

Other payments captured in the court papers include the payment of $400,000 on June 29, 2012 from Sullam Voe to Alison-Madueke’s husband for the charter of a tug.

The court papers also exposed a curious involvement of a church in the three-year running scandal. For example, there was the payment of the sum of £1,000,028.30 from Peters to The Christian Way of Life Churches as a “sacrificial seed” on April 5, 2012 which was a Thursday.

Wednesday, August 24, 2022

Zenith Bank powers on with double-digit topline growth in h1 2022

In a clear demonstration of its industry leadership and consistency in providing superior financial returns, Zenith Bank Plc has announced its audited results for the half-year ended 30 June 2022, recording an astounding double-digit growth of 17% in gross earnings from N346 billion reported in H1 2021 to N405 billion in H1 2022.  This is in spite of a very challenging macroeconomic environment.


According to the bank's audited half-year financial results presented to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) on Tuesday, 23rd August 2022, this growth was underpinned by a 19% YoY growth in interest income from NGN204 billion to NGN242 billion and an 18% YoY growth in non-interest income from NGN127 billion to NGN149 billion. The growth in interest income was driven by the modest increase in the loan book and improved interest margins. The increase in non-interest income attests to the Group’s success in its income diversification strategy.

 

FG, US sign agreement on return of over $23 million Abacha loot


The Federal Government and the United States Government have reached an agreement on the return of more than $23.439 million Abacha loot.

The agreement involves the management of some forfeited assets in relation to MECOSTA/Sani Mohammed Asset known as Abacha V.

The agreement which is on the sharing, transfer, repatriation, disposition and management of the said asset was signed by the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, on behalf of Nigeria and the US Ambassador to Nigeria, Mary Beth Leonard on behalf of the U.S government.
The agreement signing ceremony was held in the office of the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Mr. Abubakar Malami on Tuesday in Abuja.

Twitter misled regulators on bot accounts - Ex-security head claims in reports


Twitter Inc misled federal regulators about its defenses against hackers and spam accounts, CNN and the Washington Post reported on Tuesday, citing whistleblower disclosures by the social media company's former security chief Peiter Zatko.

Twitter executives don't have the resources to fully understand the true number of bots on the platform, and were not motivated to, CNN reported, citing Zatko's complaint.

Court slams N840m judgment against Sterling Bank Plc

A High Court sitting in Effurun in Uvwie Local Government Area, Delta State has awarded N840.8 million against Sterling Bank Plc and Mr Godwin Nwekoyo (defendants) for unlawfully sealing the premises of Joma Frozen Food Products Limited.

Justice Roli-Daibo Harriman gave the order while delivering a judgement in Suit No: EHC/216/2015 filed by the claimant, Agro Allied Development Enterprises (claimant).

Delivering judgement, Justice Harriman held that the 1st defendant, Joma Frozen Food Products limited, had no direct or indirect responsibility for the actions of the defendants.

She held that the sealing of the cold room facility situated at Number 13, Refinery Road, Effurun, Warri, Delta State by the defendants “is an act of trespass.

Tuesday, August 23, 2022

Court Orders First Bank to Pay Ex-Staff N23.3m for Wrongful Dismissal


An Abuja division of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) has ordered First Bank Plc, to pay a total sum of N23,307,134.57 million, to one of its former staff, for wrongful and unlawful dismissal from work.

The court presided by Justice Edith N. Agbakoba, awarded the judgment sum against First Bank Plc, while delivering judgment in a suit marked NICN/ABJ/229/2015, filed by one Gbenga Giwa, a former employee of the bank who was unjustly dismissed from the bank over controversial N60 million fraud.

Giwa, who worked last with the bank as Deputy Manager (Construction/Infrastructures Desk), before his unjust dismissal, had approached the court through his counsel, Bola Aidi, for the following reliefs; “a declaration that the purported letter of dismissal dated May 4, 2015, served on the claimant is null, void and of no effect whatsoever.

Friday, August 19, 2022

NBC Revokes Licences Of Silverbird, AIT, Raypower, Rhythm FM, Others over N2.66 Billion debt


The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has revoked the broadcast licences of Silverbird TV, AIT, Raypower FM, and Rhythm FM amongst others over failure to renew their licences amounting to N2.66 billion.

A statement by NBC on Friday noted that the move followed the publication of a list of stations yet to renew their licences. It said a two-week waiver was given to them in May to do so after which they risked the revocation of their broadcast licences.

Senior Presidential Adviser Reveals "The Other Side" Of BUA Group's Success Story


Senior Presidential Adviser, Femi Adesina has revealed the "other side" of the amazing success story of BUA Group under the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.

Adesina, the Special Adviser to President Buhari on Media and Publicity in an insightful

Thursday, August 18, 2022

Death toll rises to 26 in Algerian wildfires, minister says


The number of victims of wildfires in Algeria has risen to 26 from eight reported earlier, the country's interior minister said on Wednesday.

The wildfires had been burning in the mountainous areas east of Algeria, and the victims were from the provinces of Al Taref, and Setif.

Animals, trees were also not spared from the fires, the majority of which firefighters and helicopters managed to get under control throughout the day on Thursday.

A year ago, at least 65 were killed in the Kabylie region.

Tuesday, August 16, 2022

Wike gifts Odili a multi-million naira mansion on 74th birthday


Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike has gifted a multi-million naira house to ex-governor Peter Odili for his 74th birthday.

Odili, governed the oil-rich state between 1999 to 2007 when Wike served as Chairman, Obi Akpor Local Government Area.

Celebrating Odili at a ceremony organized by the Rivers State Government to commemorate the 74th birthday anniversary in Port Harcourt on Monday, Wike eulogised the ex-governor for the role he played in his emergence as governor.

Sunday, August 14, 2022

Miss MAPOLY 2022 abducted, killed in Ogun State


A student of the Moshood Abiola Polytechnic (MAPOLY), Abeokuta, Happiness Odeh, has been reportedly killed by her abductors.
Odeh, it was gathered, won the Miss MAPOLY beauty contest on August 3, 2022.

The ND2 student of Mass Communication was said to have been kidnapped on her way to Ipara, in Ode Remo on Tuesday evening
The beauty queen was kidnapped along Iperu road by some unknown persons who it was gathered, raped her before killing her in cold blood.

The MAPOLY Students Union (MAPSU), has confirmed the incident.

Saturday, August 13, 2022

UBA appoints new GMD, others


United Bank for Africa Plc on Monday announced the appointment of Oliver Alawuba as its group managing director, overseeing all the Group’s banking operations across its 20 African country networks and globally in the United Kingdom, the United States of America, France, and the United Arab Emirates.

In a statement, the UBA Group Chairman, Tony Elumelu, said, “I am very pleased to announce Oliver Alawuba as the new group managing director of the UBA Group. Oliver has extensive experience in Nigeria and our African network and is well equipped to advance our pan-African and global strategy.

Friday, August 12, 2022

#EndSARS: FG to award N289 million compensation to 75 more victims


The Nigerian Government has announced that 75 more victims who petitioned following the EndSARS protests, will receive a compensation of N289 million by the end of the month.

This follows the Independent Investigative Panel (IIP-SARS) set up by the Nigerian Human Rights Commission after the protests.

The petitions covered cases of police brutality toward Nigerians which led to a 2-week protest which ended with the Lekki Massacre at the Lekki Toll Gate on the 20th of October 2020.

The FG disclosed that following the EndSARS protests, “the Independent Investigative Panel (IIP-SARS) set up by Nigerian Human Rights Commission, received 279 petitions from 29 States.

“Upon conclusion of deliberations the Nigerian Government, a compensation of over N146 million to 26 petitioners in Dec 2021 was made”.

They also added that another batch of 75 petitioners (who petitioned following the 2020 anti-SARS protests) will be paid N289 million in awarded compensation at the end of August 2022.

Nairametrics

Thursday, August 11, 2022

Why Ambode Is Trending

 


Akinwunmi Ambode, the only governor limited to a single term since the political family of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu took the reins of the affairs of Lagos state is back on the lips of many.


Since the 59year old left office in the

Saturday, August 6, 2022

Lightning strike near White House kills two people


Two people were killed and two more were in critical condition on Friday after a lightning strike near the White House the night before, police in the US capital said.

The lightning hit Lafayette Square, a small park across the street from the White House, shortly before 7:00 pm (2300 GMT) Thursday, leaving two men and two women with “critical life-threatening injuries,” according to a statement from Washington’s fire and emergencies department.

All the victims were taken to local hospitals, but on Friday morning the Metroplitan Police confirmed that two of them — 75-year-old Donna Mueller and 76-year-old James Mueller, both from Janesville in Wisconsin — had been pronounced dead.

Friday, August 5, 2022

How Peter Obi lied about Nigeria's exports statistics in 2021 - AFP CheckFact


Nigerian opposition politician and presidential candidate Peter Obi has twice claimed that the country exported less than $30 billion of goods and services in 2021, underperforming smaller African peers such as Morocco. Obi argued that Nigeria was “not a producing country” and has a weak export base, causing dollar scarcity in the country. However, the claim is false; official data shows annual exports from the west African country have exceeded $30 billion for well over a decade.

Obi is a two-term ex-governor of Nigeria’s southern Anambra state and is bidding to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari in next year’s election as leader of the Labour Party. 

He first made the claim during an hour-long interview that was aired on July 6, 2022, by Nigerian broadcaster Arise Television.

Thursday, August 4, 2022

Wema bank refutes forgery allegation, says MD’s arrest inappropriate, violation of human rights


The Management of Wema Bank Plc. has kicked against the warrant of arrest of its Managing Director, Mr. Ademola Adebise, saying it is inappropriate and a violation of his fundamental right to fair hearing.

The bank also refuted and dismissed the allegations of dud cheque and forgery levelled against the managing director, as well as dismiss the inappropriate issuance of bench warrant on him.

The Chief Magistrate, Elizabeth Jones of the Chief Magistrates’ Court in Wuse, Abuja had issued a warrant of arrest against Adebise following his non- appearance before the court to respond to an ongoing forgery case brought against the bank by one Mr George Halliday despite five adjournments.


Court orders arrest of Wema Bank MD over alleged forgery



A warrant of arrest has been issued against Mr Ademola Adebisi, Managing Director of Wema Bank Plc, for alleged forgery.

Chief Magistrate Elizabeth Jones of the Chief Magistrates’ Court in Wuse, Abuja, issued the warrant following Mr. Adebisi’s failure to appear before the court on five adjournments.

The Bank chief was invited to appear before the court to respond to an ongoing forgery case brought against the bank by one Mr George Halliday.

The complainant had accused the bank of failing to honour a garnishee order absolute issued by the High Court of the FCT directing them to pay him the sum of N50 million.

Impoverished Zimbabweans turn to scrap metal trade as inflation bites


It is 11 a.m. and Shepherd Chowe has arrived at a scrap yard where dozens of other metal pickers await to sell their wares.

For two sacks, Chowe gets paid $6.

Chowe has cart filled with tins, iron rods and other metallic objects that he coolected in Hopley, a poor settlement about 15 km west of Zimbabwe's capital, Harare.

"I start moving around the township at 8 am when families are up. My job entails asking people to sell their scrap metal or anything metallic they are not using anymore. We always negotiate the price before coming here to sell. I can take care of my family through this business; I get $40 per day or less. Although it is tough, I can provide for them. Scrap metal has given us hope" Chowe said.

N109bn Fraud: How Suspended AGF Idris, Compromised TSA, GIFMIS, IPPIS, for Personal Gains


Fresh facts have emerged on how former suspended Accountant-General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris compromised the Treasury Single Account , TSA, Government Integrated Financial Management Information System , GIFMIS, Integrated Payroll and Personnel information system , IPPIS, and carted away billions of naira belonging to the government.

Idris and his co-defendants: Godfrey Olusegun Akindele, Mohammed Kudu Usman are standing trial in a N109 billion fraud before Justice A. O. Adeyemi Ajayi of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, FCT, Maitama, Abuja.

Tuesday, August 2, 2022

Wema Bank records impressive financial performance in 2022 Half-Year Reports


Wema Bank Plc, pioneer of Africa’s first fully digital bank and one of Nigeria’s most resilient banks, has posted a growth performance across all financial indices in the First-Half of its 2022 operations. This information is contained in the Financial Results for the Period Ended 30 June, 2022 released in Lagos on 28 July, 2022.

In the report, the bank recorded an increase of 50 percent in its Gross Earnings from the ₦39.82 billion it recorded in H1 of 2021 to ₦59.59 billion. It also grew its Interest Income by 55 percent year-on-year, from the ₦32.19 billion recorded at this period last year to ₦49.75 billion. The bank’s Non-Interest Income went up from ₦7.64 billion in the period ended 30 June, 2021 to ₦9.85 billion, an increase of 29 percent.