Business

Foreign Airlines Fume, Accuse FG Of Blocking Repatriation Of $700 Million

Published

3 years ago

October 17, 2022

Airline operators under the International Air Transport Association (IATA) have accused the federal government of blocking the repatriation of over $700 million from ticket sales.

The operators stated this on Monday during an interactive session organized by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila.

It would be recalled that Emirate Airlines had planned to stop operations in Nigeria over $85 million trapped funds until the intervention by the Central Bank of Nigeria.

As of August, the total trapped fund was $464 million US dollars. But the IATA stated that the funds have increased to over $700 million.

Samson Fatokun, who spoke on behalf of the foreign airlines said several times that the government must obey the international laws and treaties governing the aviation sector.

He stated that under the BASA principle, the Nigerian government has an obligation to support the airlines to repatriate their funds in the US dollar.

“These are contractual obligations that have been signed. As of today, after the CBN intervention of August 29, we have about $700 million in blocked funds. This is astronomically high and it is the highest in the world. There is no country in the world that has that amount of blocked funds. Nigeria accounts for 32% of the trapped funds in the world. That is 1/3 of the total blocked funds in the world,” he said.

However, local operators who were at the meeting disagreed with their foreign counterparts.

Allen Onyema, the owner of Air Peace, said the local operators are more patriotic and can perform better if given the opportunity.

Onyema said some countries like the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates are not reciprocating the bilateral agreement in the aviation sector.

He also raised the maltreatment of Nigerian-owned airlines by the UK government.

Also speaking on behalf of the local airlines, Obiora Okonkwo, said foreign airlines should use the I and E window to source for dollars instead of waiting for the CBN to give them dollars.

“The money is in the account, they have access to it. It is in Naira and they can use it as they please, including investing in Nigeria if they wish. But we understand that the policy of Nigeria is simple,” he said.

Following today’s meeting, the Speaker of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila adjourned the meeting till Thursday to allow the Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, and the Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele to attend the next meeting.

Business

NNPCL Revenue, Profit Soar To N5.08tn, N447bn In October

Published

21 hours ago

November 29, 2025

Editor

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has announced a significant revenue increase to N5.078 trillion for October 2025.

The state-owned firm disclosed this in its monthly financial report released on Saturday.

According to the financial report, from N5.078 revenue in October, the company posted a N447 profit after tax.

The figure represents a significant 19.2 percent increase in revenue from N4.26 trillion and a 106 percent rise in PAT from N216 billion in September 2025.

The report stated that from January to September, NNPCL paid N11.150 trillion in statutory payments to the federation.

Four days ago, NNPCL posted a total of N45.1 trillion as total revenue for the 2024 financial year.

Business

NNPCL Reveals Reason Behind N5.4trn Profit After Tax

Published

21 hours ago

November 29, 2025

Editor

The Group Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, Bayo Ojulari, has explained that the state-owned firm’s N5.4 trillion profit after tax declaration in its 2024 financial statements indicates that the country has begun to reap the benefits of the Petroleum Industry Act.

He made this explanation in an interview released on NNPCL’s X account on Friday.

Recall that NNPCL declared a significant N5.4 trillion PAT from a total revenue of N45.1 trillion in 2024.

Reacting, Ojulari said the earnings result demonstrated the state-owned firm’s commitment to transparency.

“This earning is our first step in going out there to make ourselves more visible and demonstrate our commitment towards transparency. The profit of N5.4 trillion is quite significant. What that indicates is that we are beginning to reap the benefits of the Petroleum Industry Act.”

According to DAILY POST, since Ojulari’s appointment in April 2025, NNPCL has been consistent in making its monthly financial records public.

Business

CBN Directs Nigerian Banks To Withdraw Misleading Advertisement

Published

2 days ago

November 28, 2025

Editor

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed Nigerian banks, payment service banks and other financial institutions to immediately withdraw all advertisements that violate consumer-protection rules.

The directive, issued in a circular dated Thursday and signed by Olubunmi Ayodele-Oni, director of the CBN’s compliance department, followed a review of marketing practices in the financial sector.

The apex bank said the assessment revealed inconsistencies in how institutions apply disclosure, transparency and fair-marketing requirements.

The CBN ordered the removal of all non-compliant adverts and warned that future promotional materials must be factual, balanced and transparent.

It banned misleading claims, exaggerated benefits, incomplete information, unaudited financial results and comparative language that could de-market competitors.
The regulator of Nigeria’s financial sector also prohibited chance-based promotional inducements such as lotteries, prize draws and lucky dips.

Accordingly, institutions submitting adverts for prior notification must now include campaign timelines, creative materials, target audience details and written confirmation of internal legal and compliance clearance, along with proof that the underlying product has CBN approval.

The bank clarified that such notifications are only for monitoring and do not amount to approval.
All affected institutions must file a compliance attestation within 30 days, signed by the chief executive and compliance leads.

The CBN added that beginning January 2026, it will conduct a follow-up review and apply sanctions for violations under BOFIA 2020 and the Consumer Protection Regulations.