E-Financial
FIRS Adopts Technology to Drive Tax Collection
Mr Tunde Fowler, the Executive Chairman of Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), yesterday said the service was adopting technology to boost tax collection in 2017.
Fowler disclosed this at the closing ceremony of a three-day training on taxation for journalists in Lagos.
He said that the service collected N3.30 trillion in taxes in 2016, a drop from the N3.74 trillion it collected in 2015.
The FIRS boss, represented by Mrs Nneka ifekwuna, the Deputy Director of Communications and Servicom, said the service was convinced that 2017 would be a better year in terms of tax collection .
Fowler said that apart from the use of technology, the agency was also using persuasion and enforcement as well as partnership with the press to boost tax revenue.
He said that other efforts included ongoing nationwide registration of new taxpayers to expand the tax net in the country.
“The result is the registration of 814, 000 additional taxpayers by December 2016 by FIRS and 3.4 million taxpayers by State Internal Revenue Services (SIRSs).
“By Decemeber last year, Nigeria had a national tax roll of 14 million,” Fowler said.
On the ease of tax payment, Fowler said taxpayers filing their tax returns at the FIRS offices nearest to them had increased the compliance level.
He said that FIRS had embarked on some other initiatives to promote voluntary compliance.
The executive chairman said these included shielding taxpayers from the burden of carrying forward tax liabilities that rose from penalty and interest.
He said that collaboration with the Office of Accountant General of the Federation had forced all the ministries, departments and agencies to be remitting Withholding Tax (WHT), Value Added Tax (VAT) and others.
The FIRS boss said the organisation was being guided by its core values which included professionalism, integrity, efficiency, ownership and collective responsibility.
Fowler said that the FIRS had introduced waiver of interest and penalties to realise its mandate of generating revenues for sustainable development.
E-Financial
Lagos State Appoints MoneyMaster as Payment Partner for “Ounje Eko” Programme
“Ounje Eko”, the food price discount initiative of the Lagos State Government, has appointed leading payment service bank, MoneyMaster Payment Service Bank Limited (MMPSB), as its collaborator in the bid to ensure ease of payments at the market.
MoneyMaster is one of the Central Bank of Nigeria-licensed Payment Service Banks (PSBs) to promote financial inclusion across Nigeria.
Under the partnership, MMPSB will apply its cutting-edge payment solution to engender easy payment and reconciliation in order to make the experiences of Lagosians who will be getting their food supplies from the markets pleasurable. Its payment solution is also all-encompassing and ensures real time value to payment destinations.
The mobile bank was appointed as the collection and payment partner for “Ounje Eko” Food Markets programme which is a government initiative serving the five divisions of Lagos State. Consequent on this, MoneyMaster Payment Service Bank will collect payments in 57 LCDAs in the state.
The partnership gives credence to the quality of payment solutions that MoneyMaster is reputed for in its services to its growing business clientele in private and public sectors.
E-Financial
CBN, EFCC Probe Banks, Firms over Alleged Forex Racketeering
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), is investigating irregular foreign exchange transactions and forward contracts valued at approximately $2.4 billion.
The inquiry follows an extensive audit by Deloitte, which scrutinized $7 billion in dollar debts accumulated under the bank’s previous leadership.
In the aftermath of the 294th Monetary Policy Committee meeting in Abuja, Yemi Cardoso, governor of CBN, disclosed to journalists that the investigation, supported by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, among other security bodies, aims to clarify the legitimacy of these FX allocations identified as problematic by the audit.
“It was determined that a number of these transactions did not qualify…they were outright illegal. The law enforcement agencies are now looking into those transactions that as far as we are concerned, are not valid to be paid,” Cardoso detailed, emphasizing the unlawful nature of these forex deals.
The crux of the investigation lies in the audit findings that a significant portion of the scrutinized transactions lacked proper documentation and, in many instances, were deemed outright illegal.
However, the unfolding investigation has raised concerns within the organized private sector, with some entities contemplating legal action against commercial banks for unresolved forex bids.
Despite these tensions, Governor Cardoso reassures that the foreign exchange market remains open and transparent, inviting stakeholders to address their forex needs through the official channels.
Furthermore, Cardoso clarified the distribution of fertilizers to farmers as a one-off measure and not indicative of a shift back to direct interventions by the CBN, underscoring a commitment to strategic, regulatory governance rather than direct market involvement.
E-Financial
CBN Urges Banks to Expedite Action on Recapitalisation
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed deposit money banks in the country to expedite action to increase their capital base from the current ₦25bn.
Olayemi Cardoso, governor of CBN, stated this during the apex bank’s 294th meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on Tuesday in Abuja, when the MPC hiked the interest rate by 22.75% to 24.75%.
The apex bank chief said the MPC examined developments in the banking sector and expressed satisfaction that the industry remained stable. The committee, however, said to guard against risk, commercial banks in the country should accelerate their recapitalisation efforts.
Cardoso said, “The MPC also reviewed developments in the banking system and noted that the industry remains safe, sound, and stable. The committee thus called on the bank to sustain its surveillance and ensure compliance of banks with existing regulatory and macro-potential guidelines.
“The MPC also enjoined the banks to expedite actions on the recapitalisation of banks to strengthen the system against potential risks in an increasingly globalised world.”
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