News
UK Rescinds Controversial £3,000 Bond for Nigerians Seeking UK Visas
The United Kingdom has rescinded her controversial plans for a £3,000 bond on Nigerians seeking entry to the country after a massive outrage greeted the proposed scheme.
Appalled by the move, Nigeria’s ministry of Foreign Affairs assured Nigerians of government’s readiness to defend and protect them all over the world.
Also the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee described the proposed UK entry bond as discriminatory and unacceptable.
The plan is now being hastily rewritten after Nick Clegg, Liberal Democrat leader in the UK declined to sign off the details of a pilot scheme due to start in November.
It would be recalled that Theresa Mary May, British Home secretary had put forward a £3,000 cash bond to deter “high risk” Asian and African short-term visitors from overstaying in Britain.
The scheme was floated at the weekend by the home secretary and provoked uproar in India and Nigeria, which were among the six countries named as possible targets, with threats that reciprocal action should be taken against British visitors.
The other countries were Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Ghana.
“The policy has not yet been signed off,” said a Liberal Democrat source in the UK was quoted as saying.
“We are in favour of the principle but the exact details of how it is to be piloted, including the size of the bond, is still being discussed in government.”
Clegg has said he favours the introduction of a £1,000 cash bond to deter overstayers.
Home Office sources confirmed that the level at which the bond is to be set was among the details yet to be decided, and said the pilot scheme was still in the planning stage.
They stressed that the requirement to post a bond would not apply to all visitors from the designated countries but only to individuals regarded as high risk.
The scheme might apply to hundreds of visitor visa applicants initially, before being expanded to cover many thousands later.
The Home Office wants to pilot the scheme for six-month visitor visas and will extend it to student and work visas if it proves successful. Those who overstay their visa and fail to return home will forfeit the money.
The Financial Times reported on Tuesday that the announcement of a £3,000 bond scheme at the weekend was in danger of provoking a diplomatic backlash in India, months after David Cameron had tried to combat the perception that Britain was closing its doors to students from the subcontinent.
It reported that the Confederation of British Industry had attacked the scheme as “highly discriminatory and very unfortunate”.
In Nigeria senior government officials and politicians described the scheme as discriminatory and unacceptable.
Mr Ode Ogbole, spokesman for the Foreign Affairs Ministry in Abuja told Daily Trust: “It’s been rescinded”.
Elsewhere, Nnenna Elendu-Ukeje (PDP Abia), committee chairman on foreign affairs said in a statement that “This is totally discriminatory and unacceptable. It is targeted to non-white Commonwealth. We would take a critical look at the policy as it affects Nigerians and come up with a way forward”
“We agreed totally with the UK Foreign Minister that the policy is totally unworkable and impractical. It is contrary to the commitment made to our President by David Cameron during their last meeting. We believe it is for political reason ahead of general election. We seek that our long historical relationship should take precedence over political expediency,” Ukeje said.
In the UK, Keith Vaz, chair of the Commons home affairs committee, said the move flew in the face of Cameron’s intention to attract the brightest and best to Britain. “The plans could potentially alienate already settled communities in the UK,” he said.
“There are a number of holes in the home secretary’s pilot. If this is to be workable she must conduct a proper consultation. She has said she wants to deter overstayers, yet with the mess that is E-Borders there is currently no way to monitor if people actually leave the country.
The bond level of £3,000 is completely unrealistic. If somebody was determined to work here illegally this could be earned back in a matter of months,” Vaz said.
But May said the move was the next step in making sure the immigration system was more selective, and bringing down net migration from the hundreds of thousands to the tens of thousands while still welcoming the brightest and the best to Britain.
“In the long run we’re interested in a system of bonds that deters overstaying and recovers costs if a foreign national has used our public services,” she said. “We’re planning a pilot that focuses on overstayers and examines a couple of different ways of applying bonds. The pilot will apply to visitor visas, but if the scheme is successful we’d like to be able to apply it on an intelligence-led basis on any visa route and any country.”
DataPro Rating Agency has upgraded the long-term credit rating of Dangote Cement Plc to AA+ from AA, citing the company’s strong financial performance, market leadership and ability to meet its financial obligations despite Nigeria’s challenging economic environment.
In its latest rating report, the technology-driven credit rating agency also affirmed Dangote Cement’s short-term rating at A1, with a Stable Outlook. The ratings are valid until June 16, 2027.
DataPro said the upgrade reflects the cement maker’s sustained financial strength, resilient operating performance and dominant position in Nigeria and across Africa.
According to the agency, the assessment followed a comprehensive review of the company’s capital base, earnings, liquidity, corporate governance, regulatory compliance and the sustainability of its financial performance over the medium to long term.
It noted that Dangote Cement’s strong brand, leading market share, solid earnings, robust asset base and experienced management continue to strengthen its ability to meet financial commitments on time.
The agency also highlighted the company’s outstanding financial performance in 2025.
According to the report, Dangote Cement posted N4.31 trillion in revenue during the year, representing a 20 per cent increase from the previous year. Profit before tax more than doubled, rising 109 per cent to N1.53 trillion, driven by higher sales, improved operating efficiency, lower finance costs and a stronger capital structure.
DataPro said the AA+ long-term rating indicates low credit risk and reflects excellent financial strength, business profile and operating performance relative to its rating benchmarks.
It added that the A1 short-term rating signifies good credit quality and shows that the company has a strong capacity to meet its short-term financial obligations as they fall due.
The rating agency, however, noted that the credit rating has a maximum shelf life of 12 calendar months in line with international best practice and should be used only as a reference, not as an offer to trade in securities or as a substitute for investors’ independent judgement.
Xora Finance has announced it will no longer consider job applicants from Nigeria.
Xora Finance is a digital bank founded by Joren Lundgren, in February 2026 and allows users to deposit and earn interest on their XRP cryptocurrency.
Lundgren, founder, in an announcement on X (formerly Twitter), cited an ongoing pattern of misconduct, such as dishonesty and theft, from previous Nigerian hires as the reason for the decision.
This sudden blanket ban came just days after the company’s official career page was aggressively recruiting remote workers for marketing and content roles.
The announcement generated heavy backlash online, with many people upset that a blanket rule punishes honest job seekers.
Some lawyers have said that victims of Ponzi schemes have legal remedies, although recovering lost funds and prosecuting perpetrators remain major challenges.
A Ponzi scheme is an investment fraud that pays existing investors with funds collected from new participants rather than from actual profits.
Operators lure victims by promising high returns with little to no risk.
The scheme inevitably collapses when the flow of new investors slows down.
Some lawyers who spoke to News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) separate interviews with on Sunday, said that victims could pursue civil actions to recover their money.
Mr Chibuikem Opara, a lawyer at Justification Chambers, Ikeja,said many Nigerians continued to fall victim to Ponzi schemes in spite of repeated warnings.
Opara said it was wrong to attribute participation in Ponzi schemes to a lack of investment opportunities, noting that promoters often exploit investors’ greed through promises of unrealistic returns.
“What you cannot take away is the fact that many Nigerians have fallen and continue to fall victim to these schemes every time,” he said.
According to him, victims may individually or collectively institute civil actions against the beneficiary company for breach of contract or refund arising from failure of consideration.
Opara said victims could also unite to seek an order from the Federal High Court to wind up the beneficiary company.
He, however, noted that such efforts might yield little benefit if perpetrators had already siphoned the funds and left behind an empty shell.
The lawyer said available remedies largely depended on the actions of relevant authorities, adding that recipient accounts could be frozen to facilitate fund recovery and support winding-up proceedings.
Opara said regulators and law enforcement agencies often became aware of Ponzi schemes only after substantial losses had occurred.
According to him, victims frequently failed to report suspicious schemes early enough to enable timely intervention.
He added that funds are sometimes moved outside the country before authorities become aware of the fraud.
Opara also cited inadequate information and the deceptive nature of the schemes as major obstacles to investigation and prosecution.
“Most times, everything about the schemes is made to appear elusive, just like the profits promised to victims,” he said.
Also speaking, Mr Vincent Aminu of A.F. Aminu and Co. advised that victims of investment scams should report such cases to appropriate law enforcement agencies on time.
Aminu said victims could petition the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) or file reports with the police.
He said that after investigation, prosecutors could bring charges against suspects under relevant fraud-related laws, including provisions of the Criminal Code and the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act.
Beyond criminal prosecution, Aminu said .victims could pursue civil actions to recover their money
According to him, such actions may be based on breach of contract, unjust enrichment, or fraudulent misrepresentation, depending on the circumstances.
He added that victims could petition the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which could investigate illegal operators, shut down unauthorised platforms, and freeze assets.
He identified the anonymity of online fraudsters as one of the biggest challenges confronting investigators.
According to him, many operators concealed their identities through fake digital profiles and technologies that made tracking them difficult.
Aminu also noted that victims who delayed taking legal action risked losing opportunities for redress.
He added that prolonged court proceedings often delayed justice for victims.
“Many fraud-related cases take years before the court reaches a verdict, thereby delaying justice for victims,” he said.
Also, Mr Chris Ayiyi of Ayiyi Chambers, Apapa, described Ponzi schemes as a gamble that benefited early participants at the expense of later investors.
Ayiyi said some early entrants received returns on their investments, thereby encouraging others to join the schemes.
He said the schemes eventually collapsed, leaving late investors to bear the losses
The lawyer called for a complete ban on Ponzi schemes or sustained public enlightenment campaigns against them.
He urged the National Assembly to enact laws that would strengthen regulation and provide greater protection for investors.
According to him, stronger legal safeguards are necessary in a country operating a capital-based economy.
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