$8.1b dispute: Court adjourns MTN, CBN case to next year

A Nigerian judge adjourned yesterday a hearing over an $8.1 billion dispute between South African telecoms giant MTN and the central bank until Jan. 22.

The dispute is over the transfer of $8.1 billion of funds which Nigeria’s central bank said the company had sent abroad in breach of foreign-exchange regulations. MTN has denied any wrongdoing.

Nigeria is MTN’s biggest market, accounting for a third of the South African company’s annual core profit. The mobile phone network serves 56 million people in Nigeria.

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The adjournment came at the request of the central bank and MTN lawyers.

“We are still making moves towards an out of court settlement,” a central bank lawyer told the court.

An MTN lawyer said discussions were ongoing.

Nigeria is MTN’s biggest market, accounting for a third of the South African company’s annual core profit. The mobile phone network serves 56 million people in Nigeria.