Economy
Nigeria Needs Efficient Tax Refund System—PwC
By Dipo Olowookere
The federal government has been advised to consider implementing a proper tax refund system to increase investment in the country.
In a publication titled Tax Refunds in Nigeria – Myth or Reality, the firm said “investors will feel more confident when they know that overpaid taxes can be refunded.”
In the article, PwC picked a hole in the current system which fixed the tax refund budget of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) at N25 billion in a year, noting that this will discourage some companies from applying for a refund.
While analysing the 2021 annual report of the FIRS, which gave a breakdown of refund cases between 2019 and 2021, it was observed that the agency emphasised that the payment of approved refund applications was subject to the availability of the funds released to it in its annual budget/appropriation despite witnessing almost 10 per cent rise in tax refund applications from organisations and individuals.
According to the tax collecting organisation, it received tax refund claims of N321.4 billion between 2019 and 2011 but could only pay N69.9 billion.
“The question then is whether the government has made adequate provisions to cater for situations where the approved refunds exceed the budget,” the member of the Big Four accounting firms asked.
This made PwC conclude that “refunds would likely be considered more of a myth to many businesses, especially those whose refund requests exceeded the FIRS’ N25 billion refund budget, or who are hit with additional liabilities following a refund audit.”
Business Post reports that in the Federal Inland Revenue Service Establishment Act 2007 (FIRSEA), taxpayers can request refunds if they have made an overpayment.
The excess can only be paid to the beneficiary within 90 days after an audit has been carried out to authenticate the validity of the request.
However, as noted by PwC, “The tax audit process in Nigeria is known to be rigorous, lengthy and expensive, and the tax refund applicants often end up with liabilities that exceed the refund requested and looked into areas that are not relevant for the refund.
“Section 23 of the FIRSEA does not specify a timeframe within which tax refund audits must be concluded; as a result, there seems to be a low level of commitment from the tax authority to finalise such audits.”
To address this, the firm has advised that “the timeframe from verification of refund to the payment of the tax refunds should not exceed 12 months,” adding that “commercial interest should apply on late payment of refunds, similar to interest imposed on taxpayers for late payment of taxes” to encourage accountability and align Nigeria’s tax system with global best practices.
It said in “Germany, refund payments are usually made within two to six months of an application; and there is an interest of 0.15 per cent that is charged for late refunds payments.”
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The deadline for filing of employers’ annual tax returns in Lagos State has been extended by one week from February 1 to 7, 2026.
This information was revealed in a statement signed by the Head of Corporate Communications of the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service (LIRS), Mrs Monsurat Amasa-Oyelude.
In the statement issued over the weekend, the chairman of the tax collecting organisation, Mr Ayodele Subair, explained that the statutory deadline for filing of employers’ annual tax returns is January 31, every year, noting that the extension is intended to provide employers with additional time to complete and submit accurate tax returns.
According to him, employers must give priority to the timely filing of their annual returns, noting that compliance should be embedded as a routine business practice.
He also reiterated that electronic filing through the LIRS eTax platform remains the only approved method for submitting annual returns, as manual filings have been completely phased out. Employers are therefore required to file their returns exclusively through the LIRS eTax portal: https://etax.lirs.net.
Describing the platform as secure, user-friendly, and accessible 24/7, Mr Subair advised employers to ensure that the Tax ID (Tax Identification Number) of all employees is correctly captured in their submissions.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The chief executive of Airtel Africa Plc, Mr Sunil Kumar Taldar, has disclosed that the company is still on track to list its mobile money business, Airtel Money, before the end of June 2026.
Recall that Business Post reported in March 2024 that the mobile network operator was considering selling the shares of Airtel Money to the public through the IPO vehicle in a transaction expected to raise about $4 billion.
The firm had been in talks with possible advisors for a planned listing of the shares from the initial public offer on a stock exchange with some options including London, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), or Europe.
However, so far no final decisions have been made regarding the timing, location, or scale of the IPO.
In September 2025, the telco reportedly picked Citigroup Incorporated as advisors for the planned IPO which will see Airtel Money become a standalone entity before it can attain the prestige of trading on a stock exchange.
Mr Taldar, noted that metrics continued to show improvements ahead of the listing with its customer base hitting 52 million, compared to around 44.6 million users it had as of June 2025.
He added that the subsidiary processed over $210 billion in a year, according to the company’s nine-month financial results released on Friday.
“Our push to enhance financial inclusion across the continent continues to gain momentum with our Mobile Money customer base expanding to 52 million, surpassing the 50 million milestone. Annualised total processed value of over $210 billion in Q3’26 underscores the depth of our merchants, agents, and partner ecosystem and remains a key player in driving improved access to financial services across Africa.
“We remain on track for the listing of Airtel Money in the first half of 2026,” Mr Taldar said.
Estimating Airtel Money at $4 billion is higher than its valuation of $2.65 billion in 2021. In 2021, Airtel Money received significant investments, including $200 million from TPG Incorporated at a valuation of $2.65 billion and $100 million from Mastercard. Later that same year, an affiliate of Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund also acquired an undisclosed stake in the unit.
The mobile money sector in Africa is expanding rapidly, driven by a young population increasingly adopting technology for financial services, making the continent a key market for fintech companies.
By Dipo Olowookere
A cryptocurrency investor and owner of Polyfarm, Mr Bamu Gift Wandji, is currently cooling off in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
He was handed over to the anti-money laundering agency by the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) on Friday, January 30, 2026, after his arrest on Monday, January 12, 2026.
A statement from the EFCC yesterday disclosed that the suspect was apprehended by the NSCDC in Gwagwalada, Abuja for running an investment scheme without the authorisation of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which is the apex capital market regulator in Nigeria.
It was claimed that Mr Wandji created a fraudulent crypto investment platform called Polyfarm, where he allegedly lured innocent Nigerians to invest in Polygon, a crypto token that attracts high returns.
Investigation further revealed that he also deceived the public that his project, Polyfarm, has its native token called “polyfarm coin” which he sold to the public.
In his bid to promote the scheme, the suspect posted about this on social media platforms, including WhatsApp, X (formally Twitter) and Telegram. He also conducted seminars in some major cities in Nigeria including Kaduna, Lagos, Port Harcourt and Abuja where he described the scheme as a life-changing programme.
Further investigation revealed that in October, 2025, subscribers who could not access their funds were informed by the suspect that the site was attacked by Lazarus group, a cyber attacking group linked to North Korea.
Further investigations showed that Polyfarm is not registered and not licensed with SEC to carry out crypto transactions in Nigeria. Also, no investment happened with subscribers’ funds and that the suspect used funds paid by subscribers to pay others in the name of profit.
Investigation also revealed that native coin, polyfarm coin was never listed on coin market cap and that the suspect sold worthless coins to the general public.
Contrary to the claim of the suspect that his platform was attacked, EFCC’s investigations revealed that the platform was never attacked or hacked by anyone and that the suspect withdrew investors’ funds and utilized the same for his personal gains.
The EFCC, in the statement, disclosed that Mr Wandji would be charged to court upon conclusion of investigations.
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