Economy
Lawsuit Challenging Proposed Lafarge Sale to Chinese Firm Resumes Wednesday
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos will resume hearing a suit challenging the proposed sale of Lafarge Africa Plc to Chinese firm, Huaxin Cement Limited on Wednesday, June 11.
This follows a major legal blow to Lafarge Africa and its parent company, Holcim Group, after the court dismissed a motion seeking to challenge its jurisdiction to hear the case.
The suit was initiated by Strategic Consultancy Limited, a Nigerian firm and shareholder in Lafarge Africa, over what it described as a “surreptitious” divestment of the company’s 83.81 per cent majority shares held by Holcim Group.
The planned sale to Huaxin Cement, a Chinese-based multinational, is at the centre of the controversy.
Business Post reports that the Senate had also raised an embargo to the deal.
The court is expected to examine whether the transaction violates Nigerian laws, including the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) 2020.
Others are the Securities and Exchange Commission Act, and the Nigeria Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) Act, especially in relation to minority shareholder rights and dealings with foreign entities not registered in Nigeria.
Lafarge Africa, which is publicly listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited, became a dominant force in the local cement market after acquiring 83 per cent stake in three former federal government-owned cement firms during the privatisation exercises of 2001 and 2002.
Holcim Group, a Swiss multinational and majority owner of Lafarge Africa, had notified the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of an ongoing internal restructuring.
However, Strategic Consultancy alleged that the planned share divestment was conducted secretly and without giving local shareholders, including itself, the right of first refusal or opportunity to acquire the shares.
Meanwhile the suit, filed against Lafarge Africa, Holcim Group, the NGX, and the Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc, noted that the transaction undermines the rights of minority shareholders and involved unlawful dealings with unregistered foreign corporations.
Recall that the May 15 proceedings presided over by Justice Lewis Allagoa ruled against Lafarge’s preliminary objection contesting its jurisdiction.
The objection, raised by Mr Babatunde Fagbohunlu (SAN) for Lafarge and Mr Uzoma Azikiwe (SAN) for Holcim Group, was dismissed following arguments from Mr D.A. Awosika (SAN), counsel to Strategic Consultancy Limited.
“The 1st and 2nd defendants’ motion objecting to the Court’s jurisdiction is hereby dismissed,” Justice Allagoa had ruled.
However in a further twist, the court ordered that Caricement BV (Netherlands) and Associated International Cements Ltd (England) be joined as the 5th and 6th defendants, respectively.
Both entities were identified by the respondents as beneficial owners of the shares in question.
“The court also granted leave to serve the new parties with court documents outside Nigeria
“It is hereby ordered that the persons sought to be joined herein and hereby joined as prayed and leave to issue and serve the originating summons out of jurisdiction is hereby granted,” the judge held back then.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) says the rollout of electronic invoicing (e-invoicing) will strengthen tax compliance, curb revenue leakages and improve transparency in tax administration as it moves to fully digitise the country’s tax system.
The Project Lead for the NRS e-Invoicing Project, Mr Mohammed Bawa, stated this at the DigiTax E-Invoicing Compliance Breakfast Session held in Lagos on Wednesday.
The event, organised by DigiTax, an NRS-accredited e-invoicing platform, formed part of efforts to support the agency’s ongoing education and sensitisation campaign on the e-invoicing mandate.
Mr Bawa said the initiative aligns with global trends in tax digitisation and is expected to help improve Nigeria’s tax-to-GDP ratio, which remains one of the lowest in Africa.
According to him, the system will provide the NRS with greater visibility into transactions across sectors, formalise activities within the informal economy and standardise invoice formats nationwide using globally recognised invoice schemas.
He added that e-invoicing would improve operational efficiency for both businesses and tax authorities while supporting the NRS’ transition from manual and electronic tax administration processes to a fully automated system-to-system interaction model.
Mr Bawa noted that the legal framework for implementation is backed by the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, which prescribes penalties for non-compliance.
He disclosed that the NRS has completed onboarding large taxpayers and is preparing to enforce compliance with defaulting entities.
According to him, medium taxpayers are expected to begin compliance in the third quarter of 2026, while onboarding of emerging taxpayers will commence in 2027, with full adoption targeted for all taxpayers by the end of 2028.
Mr Bawa urged taxpayers yet to be onboarded onto the platform to begin the process and work with accredited service providers to ensure compliance.
On his part, Country Director of DigiTax Nigeria, Mr Olumide Akinsola, urged businesses to look beyond their internal systems and assess the compliance status of suppliers and counterparties.
He warned that businesses whose suppliers fail to transmit invoices through the MBS platform risk losing eligibility to claim Value Added Tax (VAT) input credits on such transactions, describing the resulting supply chain exposure as a significant commercial risk that many organisations have yet to quantify.
Mr Akinsola also announced the launch of DigiTax’s white paper, The State of E-Invoicing Readiness in Nigeria, which examines compliance adoption trends and the readiness gap across different taxpayer segments.
He added that DigiTax operates in Nigeria, Kenya, Zambia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), noting that experience from those markets shows businesses that integrate early are better positioned to avoid disruptions when enforcement begins.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The names of about 100,000 companies registered by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) are about to be deleted for inactivity, especially for failing to file their annual tax returns, Business Post reports.
This information was disclosed by the CAC via a notice signed by its management on Wednesday, July 15, 2026.
The list contains organisations like the Nigeria-Poland Chamber of Trade Invest Ltd, Alariwo of Afrika Ltd, Ovation Sports International, First Union Pension Fund Administrators, Investopedia Limited, Baptist High School Abuja Ltd, and Yobe Aluminium Manufacturing Industries Ltd, amongst others.
In the statement, the commission said its decision to strike off the names of the affected firms from the register aligns with the provisions of Section 692(3) (3) and (4) of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA), 2020.
However, the affected companies can still salvage the situation by filing all outstanding annual returns and regularising their records within 90 days.
“Please note that companies that fail to comply within the stipulated timeline shall be struck off the register without further notice,” it declared, expressing its continued commitment to providing prompt and efficient registration and regulatory services to the satisfaction of its valued customers.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange gained 1.75 per cent on Wednesday, July 15, pushing the NASD Security Index (NSI) up by 74.20 points to 4,316.51 points from 4,242.31 points, as the market capitalisation added N44.54 billion to finish at N2.590 trillion compared with the preceding session’s N2.546 trillion.
During the session, there was an 11.5 per cent rise in the value of transactions at midweek to N72.7 million from the preceding session’s N65.2 million, as there was a 3.7 per cent growth in the number of deals to 28 deals from the previous session’s 27 deals, while the volume of securities slumped by 64.5 per cent to 4.9 million units from 13.7 million units.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc ended as the most active security by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, with the second spot occupied by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc after selling 2.3 billion units valued at N6.5 billion, and the third position was taken by Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc, which exchanged 74.3 million units for N5.3 billion.
GNI Plc also finished the trading day as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with a turnover of 3.4 billion units traded for N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units transacted for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units sold for N415.7 million.
Business Post reports that the market breadth index was negative yesterday, as there were two price gainers and three price losers.
11 Plc added N22.36 to its value to close at N250.00 per share versus N227.64 per share, and CSCS Plc improved by N7.95 to N90.35 per unit from N82.40 per unit.
On the flip side, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc lost N1.37 to end at N150.00 per share versus N151.37 per share, UBN Property Plc depreciated by 6 Kobo to N1.75 per unit from N1.81 per unit, and Food Concepts Plc dropped 1 Kobo to close at N2.49 per share versus N2.50 per share.
Pingback: Court Orders Status Quo in Lafarge Africa Sale Row | Business Post Nigeria