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MTN Nigeria CEO Michael Ikpoki

$5.2bn NCC fine: MTN Nigeria CEO resigns; as fine slashed to $3.4bn

MTN Nigeria CEO Michael Ikpoki
MTN Nigeria CEO Michael Ikpoki resigned, Thursday

Mobile network provider, MTN has announced that its Nigerian chief executive officer has resigned amid a multi-billion dollar fine in that country.

This is also as the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC)-imposed $5.2 billion fine for flouting SIM registration deadline is slashed by $1.8 billion from the original $5.2 billion.

The company announced in a statement, Thursday morning, that Mr. Michael Ikpoki, its Nigerian CEO, has handed in his resignation with immediate effect. MTN Nigeria’s head of regulatory and corporate affairs, Akinwale Goodluck, has also resigned.

The former chief operating officer and chief financial officer at MTN Nigeria, Ferdi Moolman, will become that business unit’s CEO. Nigerian national Amina Oyagbola has also been named head of Regulatory and Corporate Affairs at MTN Nigeria.

The resignations in Nigeria come amid MTN being fined $5.2bn by regulators in that country for failing to disconnect up to five million unregistered SIM cards in that country.

However, in a market update to shareholders, Thursday, MTN said that the NCC) had agreed to cut the fine to $3.4bn and that this penalty needs to be paid by December 31, 2015.

In the wake of the announcement of the fine in late October, MTN’s group chief executive officer Sifiso Dabengwa subsequently quit amid the company’s share price losing a fifth of its value. MTN’s former CEO Phuthuma Nhleko was then appointed as executive chairperson and tasked with tackling the fine.

MTN also said that the search for a new group CEO is underway and remains a priority.

Meanwhile, along with the announcement of Ikpoki’s resignations, MTN said it has resolved to re-implement its previous reporting structure which splits its operations into three regions: West and Central Africa  (WECA), South and East Africa (SEA),  and Middle East and North Africa (MENA).

The company also announced other new senior appointments in line with this structure.

“This revised structure and strengthened leadership will improve operational oversight and increase management capacity,” said MTN group executive chairman Phuthuma Nhleko in a statement.

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