Economy
FG Probes Tax Records of Contractors
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Federal Government, as part of efforts to improve tax compliance levels, has commenced reviewing the tax compliance records of all contractors who received payments from its various agencies in the last seven years.
This, we gathered, follows the results of a sampling exercise conducted by the Ministry of Finance which found that less than 20 percent of contractors reviewed accurately stated the income received from the Federal Government in their tax returns, whilst many made no declaration at all.
A prominent result of the sampling exercise showed that some tax clearance certificates which were presented at the point of contract award were found to have little bearing on the true value of business conducted by the contractors.
However, the Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, assured that with the new multi-agency, data driven approach, it would be far easier for tax authorities to cross check information provided in tax declarations and thereby ensure that the correct taxes were paid.
FIRS as part of its automation efforts has already eliminated the issuance of handwritten tax clearance certificates and other reforms are ongoing.
The Ministry of Finance and Office of the Accountant General of the Federation are now compiling detailed records of all payments exceeding N100 million made in the last seven years including details of the beneficiary bank accounts and other details.
All agencies have 30 days to return the information on payments made, and accounting officers are required to certify the accuracy of the data supplied. Deliberate omission or manipulation of data by accounting officers will attract sanction.
The initiative is part of the construction of a central data base of financial information being developed for use in tax compliance.
The database project dubbed ‘Project Light House’ is aimed at building comprehensive profiles of tax payers using a wide range of available data sources, including BVN, foreign exchange allocations, land registry records, and information obtained from foreign governments. The data will be used to cross check information provided to the tax authorities.
While explaining the President Muhammadu Buhari led government’s commitment to improving tax compliance, Mrs Adeosun stated that Nigeria’s low level of tax compliance was at variance with the collective desire to reduce dependence on oil and to become a prosperous nation that provides for all its citizens.
According to the Minister, ‘It was a matter of concern that those who earned money directly from Government, which is both traceable and verifiable, still failed to pay the correct taxes thereon’.
She urged such companies to promptly take advantage of the concessions offered under VAIDS, adding that once an audit or investigation had commenced, a company or individual would not be able to stop that process by participating in VAIDS.
“VAIDS has now been open since July 1, 2017 and some applications have already been received. If the tax authorities reach a company before such company has applied for VAIDS, then the full audit process will be conducted.
“This could result in penalties, interest and prosecution. So companies and individuals who know they will be affected are urged to quickly take advantage of VAIDS,” the Minister stated.
By Dipo Olowookere
A leading investment banking and capital markets solutions provider, Stanbic IBTC Capital, has been commended for its role in the Mandatory Takeover Offer (MTO) of minority shareholders of Guinness Nigeria Plc by Tolaram.
The deal underscored Stanbic IBTC Capital’s expertise in advising on complex transactions and delivering comprehensive financial solutions to clients.
Tolaram, acting through N Seven Nigeria Limited, contracted the services of Stanbic IBTC Capital as financial adviser for the transaction.
After acquiring a 58.02 per cent stake in Guinness Nigeria in 2024, Tolaram moved to take over the shares of minority investors of the brewery giant.
To make the minority equity boyout successful and meet regulatory requirements, Stanbic IBTC Capital provided comprehensive end-to-end support across both transactions, delivering a full suite of investment banking and capital markets solutions to facilitate the successful completion of this complex corporate action.
This helped Tolaram to, on May 20, 2025, to complete the purchase of the 283,099,431 shares held by minority investors for N22.94 billion, raising its shareholding in Guinness Nigeria to 70.85 per cent.
“We are grateful for the end-to-end support Stanbic IBTC Capital provided Tolaram throughout the MTO process.
“Their on-the-ground presence and expertise was invaluable in navigating the regulatory landscape and ensuring that interested Guinness Nigeria minorities were given the opportunity to sell their shares at the same price that Tolaram acquired the Guinness Nigeria stake from Diageo Plc.
“Guinness Nigeria has sufficient free float despite the MTO and Tolaram intends to continue to maintain Guinness Nigeria’s listing on Nigerian Exchange Limited,” the Group Finance Director of Tolaram, Mr Dinesh Rathi, stated.
In his remarks, the chief executive of Stanbic IBTC Capital, Mr Oladele Sotubo, said, “We thank Tolaram for the longstanding partnership and for trusting Stanbic IBTC Capital to handle this important MTO, having also advised Tolaram on its acquisition of Guinness Nigeria last year.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
Global payments solutions platform, Verto, has launched a new solution which will allow businesses to secure optimal foreign exchange (FX) rates automatically.
According to a statement shared with Business Post, Auto Exchange, as the new feature is called, was designed to help rate-sensitive customers secure their target FX rates without constant monitoring.
As a platform, Verto simplifies international money transfers and currency exchange for businesses of all sizes. With a focus on transparency, speed, and cost-effectiveness, Verto empowers businesses to thrive in the global marketplace.
The new tool allows users to set their desired exchange rate and trade amount within the Verto platform, enabling automatic execution when the Verto rate reaches their specified level.
Verto has automating the monitoring and execution process, empowering customers to capture their target rates even when they are not actively logged into the platform. It says this will allow many businesses prioritize achieving the most favorable exchange rates amid market fluctuations.
Auto Exchange provides a seamless and efficient solution, thereby making users can optimise their time and reducing missed opportunities.
“We’re thrilled to introduce Auto Exchange, a feature designed to bring both efficiency and peace of mind to our customers’ FX operations,” says Verto Product Director, Mr Tomasz Bilakiewicz, adding that “No more constant refreshing or fear of missing a target rate. With Auto Exchange, businesses can set their parameters and trust Verto to execute automatically, allowing them to focus on what truly matters – growing their business.”
Verto users can easily set up Auto Exchange orders within the platform by specifying the currency pair for exchange, their desired target exchange rate, the amount they wish to exchange, as well as the direction of the exchange (e.g., GBP to USD).
Auto Exchange is part of a suit of FX solutions offered by cross-border payment platform Verto. With the ability to exchange with bank-beating rates across 49 currencies, Verto is revolutionising cross-border payments with a focus one merging markets.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has said that the nation’s oil production rig has witnessed a 475 per cent rise from eight in 2021 to 46 in July 2025.
The chief executive of the agency, Mr Gbenga Komolafe, disclosed this on Wednesday in Abuja at the inauguration of a media workshop organised for journalists covering the oil and gas sector.
The rig countis a key metric for measuring vibrancy and performance in the oil and gas industry.
The rig which is a key equipment on which the oil is drilled reveals the level of vibrancy and the activities in the industry.
According to the commission’s data, about 46 active rigs are driving the current oil production in Nigeria.
Mr Komolafe, however, attributed the steady growth in the rig count to the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) enactment in 2021, and the commission’s commitment geared towards increasing oil production in the country.
He said the NUPRC through its Project One Million Barrels initiative had scaled up Nigeria’s oil production from one million barrels per day, oscillating around 1.7 million barrels.
The NUPRC boss said the initiative which was inaugurated in October 2024, was expected to increase oil production by one million additional units per year, adding that about 300,000 barrels of oil per day has been achieved since the inauguration of the programme.
He commended President Bola Tinubu for the Executive Orders 40, 41, and 42, which encouraged tax incentives and tax remission as well as redefined the contracting circle and the threshold in the industry.
Mr Komolafe said the 2024 Executive Orders: 40 on fiscal incentives, 41 on local content, and 42 on cost efficiency and contract timelines, had catalysed massive investment inflows.
“These have yielded positive results in terms of the Final Investment Decisions (FIDs) that have attracted huge amounts of money, billions of dollars to the country,” he said.
He urged the media practitioners to report the commission activities professionally in such a way that Nigerians would appreciate and understand its operations.
“As a regulator, we are wrongly perceived, often times people fail to understand the difference between a regulator and an operator.
“As a regulator, our activities put us in a quasi-judicial position, in position to mediate, it is an omnibus job,” he said
He reiterated that the commission will continue to play its role in Nigeria’s oil and gas development.
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