" ITREALMS: MTN under investigation over mobile money - BoU

Monday, April 13, 2015

MTN under investigation over mobile money - BoU



 
Information reaching ITRealms revealed that the apex Bank of Uganda (BoU) has concluded plans to launch a major investigation into the MTN Mobile Money dealings in the country. This was coming on the heels of The Independent report.


An undisclosed source stated that the Executive Director, Supervision in the Central Bank of Uganda (BoU), has ordered Stanbic Bank to furnish his office with details of MTN’s escrow account. The account is designated for money deposited by mobile money agents who transact in mobile money, ITRealms reports.


The Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) has also picked interest in the case over some sales tax that MTN never paid, in addition, the central bank is also interested in revelations that MTN Uganda was warned by Stanbic Bank, which holds the escrow account over failure to activate a mandatory Anti-money Laundering System on the Mobile Money system to which this account is central.

The Independent in Issue 359 recently reported extensively on details of a case in which MTN is suing six former employees in the Anti-Corruption Court for allegedly defrauding it of Shs16 billion, about N1,066,939,848billion. MTN also accuses the six of electronic fraud, neglect of duty, unauthorised disclosure, and embezzlement.

ITRealms further gathered that under cross-examination, however, witnesses have revealed questionable dealings by MTN and its staff in regards to transactions on its MTN Mobile Money platform. Among the revelations is one that MTN, by over-drawing its electronic-money account deliberately “creates money” on its Mobile Money platform and that at one point this created money amounted to Shs21 billion about N14,000,356,230billion which MTN and its staff and agents transacted in, cashed, and benefited from.

It was reported that MTN had refused to give its side of the story on the allegations. However, ITRealms can authoritatively report that following publication of the story, MTN issued a statement denying the allegations and described as “inaccurate and deliberately false” the story published by The Independent.

 Cyriacus NNAJI/ GEE

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