Corporate Affairs Commission | InsideOjodu https://www.insideojodu.com ...conecting the community Thu, 09 May 2024 07:26:53 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.9.10 http://www.insideojodu.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/favicon.ico Corporate Affairs Commission | InsideOjodu https://www.insideojodu.com 32 32 Police to go after illegal PoS operators https://www.insideojodu.com/police-to-go-after-illegal-pos-operators/ https://www.insideojodu.com/police-to-go-after-illegal-pos-operators/#respond Thu, 09 May 2024 07:26:53 +0000 https://www.insideojodu.com/?p=55864 The Federal Government has said mandatory registration of Point-of-Sales operators nationwide will reduce kidnapping…

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The Federal Government has said mandatory registration of Point-of-Sales operators nationwide will reduce kidnapping and help security agencies arrest recipients of ransom payments from kidnap victims.

It also vowed that security agencies would go after PoS operators who fail to comply with the directive to register with the Corporate Affairs Commission after July 7, 2024.

The Registrar-General, CAC,  Hussaini Magaji, disclosed this at the formal launch of the CAC registration of agents and merchants of fintechs on Wednesday in Abuja.

The event also marked the unveiling of a 24-hour service centre to help prospective applicants get a prompt response to enquiries and approvals.

The government had through the commission on Monday issued a two-month registration deadline for PoS operators to register as corporate bodies with the commission in line with the legal requirements and directives of the Central Bank of Nigeria.

The action backed by Section 863, Subsection 1 of the Companies and Allied Matters Act, CAMA 2020 as well as the 2013 CBN guidelines on agent banking aims to safeguard businesses and strengthen the economy.

It also came against the backdrop of frequent fraud incidents involving PoS terminals and plans to stop trading in cryptocurrency or any virtual currency by the Central Bank of Nigeria.

PoS terminals accounted for 26.37 per cent of fraud incidents in 2023, according to a fraud report by the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System Plc.

Last week, the CBN stopped major fintech firms like Kuda, Opay, PalmPay and Moniepoint from onboarding new customers. The fintech firms later warned their customers against trading in cryptocurrency or any virtual currency on their apps, threatening to block any accounts found engaging in such activities.

Speaking at the event, Hussaini reiterated the government’s resolve to fully implement the mandate by providing a fully digitised service centre for easy registration.

He emphasised that the registration process aligns with both legal requirements and the directives of the CBN mandating individual, merchant or business entities to be captured in its database.

He further warned that the 60-day deadline would not be extended while stressing that defaulters would receive adequate punishments after the deadline.

He said, “We have launched a 24-hour service centre to accommodate enquiries from Point of Sales operators and agents who may want to register as directed by the new policy. The secretariat is filled with staff members who have the responsibility of availability, and some are being saddled with the responsibility of approving requests. We have equipped the secretariat with the necessary facilities.

“This is to show you how the government is taking this issue seriously and the centre will be open for a 24-hour service. It will be open for compliance and any feedback from the public especially PoS operators who have been mandated to register their businesses with the commission.”

He added, “We have trained our staff to accommodate these activities and these staff can work from home and that’s why we said 24-hour service. We have equipped them with facilities and they can work from home for approvals and availability segment. The deadline remains 60 days and it will end July 7th.”

The CAC boss further stated that the timeline was not intended to target specific groups or individuals but genuinely aimed at safeguarding businesses.

The CAC boss explained, “Of course, the mandatory registration will reduce crime and fraudulent practices, the commission is hosting data and if any crime is committed anywhere, the security agencies would have to reach us to know the people behind the company and the fraudsters. But if they are not registered, we can’t do anything and that’s the essence of the registration.

“We have had a situation where a ransom is being paid with a PoS terminal and a lot of fraud but after the registration, if anything happens we can provide the details of the persons behind the company to the government. We will capture the picture and other relevant information and this is a good development for the country.”

He stressed that “after the deadline, we would go after defaulters, If you have been identified as a criminal, security agents will go after you, we will go after them because some are being chased by the security agencies already.”

He elaborated on the benefits of registration, emphasising that it goes beyond taxation to encompass access to loans, legality, and compliance with regulatory requirements.

“The law has stated that for any person to carry out business activity in the country, your business must be legitimate and for your business to be legitimate you must register, either you are doing your business as an individual or as an agent, you must register with us.

“The POS terminal holders are doing business, and we are now enforcing part of the provision of the Company and Allied Matters Act.  We have been on this issue since December and extending it to July means they have six months. We have provided a timeline in the interest of their business.

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CAC to delist 100,000 companies from database https://www.insideojodu.com/cac-to-delist-100000-companies-from-database/ https://www.insideojodu.com/cac-to-delist-100000-companies-from-database/#respond Fri, 28 Jul 2023 09:26:48 +0000 https://www.insideojodu.com/?p=47774 The Corporate Affairs Commission has said it will remove 100,000 registered companies from its…

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The Corporate Affairs Commission has said it will remove 100,000 registered companies from its database soon.

During a training on ‘Use of the beneficial ownership register’, in Lagos, the Registrar-General and Chief Executive Officer, CAC, Alhaji Garba Abubakar, disclosed the commission’s intention to delete 100,000 registered companies from its database.

“CAC steps up enforcement of 100,000 companies to go off its register for failure to file an annual return,” Abubakar said.

According to him, 100,000 companies that failed to file annual returns in the last 10 years were due to be struck off by the Corporate Affairs Commission.

Abubakar, however, said the commission would send notice of striking off to the affected companies before embarking on the action as enshrined in section 692 of the CAMA, 2020.

He explained that the companies were entitled to be relisted after payment of their outstanding debts and order of a court, as provided by the law.

Abubakar advised companies to ensure timely payment of their annual returns to avoid being struck off.

Speaking on Africa’s first Beneficial Ownership Register, built by the CAC with the support and assistance of the World Bank, the registrar general said it would go a long way in curbing corruption, money laundering, and terrorism financing.

He urged stakeholders, especially, investigating agencies, legal practitioners, journalists, and civil society organisations, to utilise the BOR in discharging their responsibilities.

In his remark, the Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association Section on Business Law, NBA-SBL, Dr Adeyeye Adefulu, commended the CAC for recording another important milestone in its history.

Adefulu said NBA-SBL would sustain its existing cordial relationship with the commission. He charged members to make good use of the knowledge acquired at the training for the benefit of the Nigerian economy.

Also speaking, the President of the Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria, Aminu Gwadabe, underscored the importance of the BOR in the fight against money laundering and terrorism financing.

Gwadabe, who highlighted some of the dangers associated with money laundering and terrorism financing, advised professionals to apply due diligence while dealing with their clients.

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Fire guts Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC HQ https://www.insideojodu.com/fire-guts-corporate-affairs-commission-cac-hq/ https://www.insideojodu.com/fire-guts-corporate-affairs-commission-cac-hq/#respond Wed, 15 Apr 2020 12:21:11 +0000 https://www.insideojodu.com/?p=12245 The headquarters of the Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC in Abuja has been gutted by…

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The headquarters of the Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC in Abuja has been gutted by fire on Wednesday.

This is coming days after the office of the Accountant General of the Federation was on fire.

The building is located in the highbrow Maitama District of the territory.

As at the time of filing this report, the cause of the inferno is still unknown.

However, it was learned that the Federal Fire Service had been alerted to the incident and were on their way to the scene.

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