Barely a year ago, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) warned stakeholders and the investing public against the activities of some unlicensed operators and their seemingly harmless Ponzi schemes, MBA forex included.
SEC made a list of some suspected Ponzi scheme operators, which are :
- Now-Now Alert
- Flip Cash Investment
- Result Investment Nigeria Limited
- Helping Hand and Investment
- No Failure Development and Empowerment Nigeria Ltd.
- MBA Forex and Investment Ltd
- Federate Investors and Trading Company
- Jamalife Helpers Global Ltd
- Flexus Global Solutions and Investment Ltd
- United Capital Investment Company Limited
SEC pointed out that, “Members of the public are to note that under the provisions of section 39(1) of the Investments and Securities Act (ISA) 2007, only persons registered with the commission can engage in capital market activities, thus making the actions of these entities listed above unlawful.”
SEC further advised the general public to refrain from investing in any scheme from those firms that have been listed and warned that anybody that invests in any unlicensed/unlawful scheme does so at their own peril.
Regardless of these warnings, many Nigerians have been left bereft after the crash of the popular MBA forex that TPCN reported in December 2020. The crash is said to be caused by the inability of the company to pay Returns on Investment to its investors for two months.
Aggrieved investors in the now-crashed investment company have recently protested to the Christ Embassy headquarters in Port Harcourt, urging the church to prevail on the embattled founder of the company, Maxwell Weli Odum, to return their investments.
The protest on Sunday was the second protest against the MBA Forex in one week in Port Harcourt.
The investors were accompanied by the Rivers State Civil Society Organisations, RIVSCO.
Recall that the investors have been counting their losses after the scheme which promised a 15-per cent return on investment, crashed last November.
Odum is said to be a partner in the church and alleged donated N1 billion to the church in 2019.
The Central Bank of Nigeria had said 125, 397 investors deposited a total of 171, 128,219,041 into accounts belonging to the company.
The Apex bank in a suit with suit Number FHC/PH/MIsC/35/2021, before the Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt on the 10th of February, filed an exparte motion seeking an order of the court to stop all debit transactions from MBA accounts.
The on the 11th of February, the court ordered that accounts maintained in any bank in Nigeria by the company be forthwith frozen for a period of time sufficient for the Central Bank of Nigeria to conclude the ongoing investigation and inquiry into the affairs of the Company.
The accounts include 39 Naira bank accounts domiciled in Access Bank, EcoBank, FCMB, GTB, Suntrust, Stanbic IBTC, Sterling Bank, UBA, Union Bank, Unity Bank and Zenith Bank.
Others are 8 dollar accounts domiciled in FCMB, Ecobank, Stanbic IBTC, UBA and Sterling Bank.
According to a court document, the company has a total of 14 branches which include Aba with 3,159 investors and deposits of N3,721, 930,689; Abuja with 10, 992 investors and deposits of N20, 508, 696,314; Allen Lagos with 10,164 investors and deposits of N13, 068, 196, 850; Asaba with 3,406 investors and deposits of N4,177,475,745; Benin with 6,170 investors and deposits of N7,016,573,157, Calabar with N2,839 investors and deposits of N3,377,292,827 and Eliozu Port Harcourt branch with 30, 138 investors and deposits of N41, 956,413,079.
Others are Enugu with 2,560 investors and deposits of N6, 972, 471, 039; Lekki with8,826 and deposits of N14, 224,187,177; Owerri 1 with 2, 545 and deposits of N2, 908,274,471; Owerri 2 with 5,276 investors and deposits of N6,752,547,834; Uyo with 2,948 investors and deposits of N4,274,056,414; Warri with 7, 213 investors and deposits of N9,766,552,367 and Port Harcourt waterlines branch with 29,151 investors and deposits of N32,403,449,045.
According to the CBN, investors from Port Harcourt made up 43.45 per cent of the total investors.
Reacting to the court order, MBA informed its investors that it will be constrained to refrain from any further actions or statements that may affect or influence the ongoing investigation as the matter is now subjudice.
“It said “We have gathered that the actions of the Central Bank of Nigeria are well within the confines of their statutory obligations and was instigated by some investors against our earlier advice.
“These disruptions have interfered with our plans and incapacitated the steps we have initiated towards the realization of the repayment
of capital investments.
“Flowing from the above, we may not be able to continue to comment on any matter relating to our operations pending the determination of the investigation initiate by the Central Bank of Nigeria”.
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