Business
MAN Raises Concerns About Astronomical Charges Imposed By Financial Reporting Council on Private Companies
For publicly quoted companies, the maximum payment earlier was N1 million per annum. Now, that amount is hiked to N25 million.
The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has expressed grave concerns over the implementation of certain provisions of the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (Amendment) act, particularly those relating to charges on non-listed entities, like most members of MAN.
The Director-General of MAN, Segun Ajayi-Kadir, said that these provisions, as currently implemented, pose significant challenges to the manufacturing companies, the majority of whom are non-listed entities and are categorized under the current definition of Public Interest Entities (PIEs) of the said Act.
For instance, a new section 33 introduced under the FRCN Amendment Act, 2023 mandates annual charges for non-listed entities, calculated as a percentage of their annual turnover (maximum being 0.05% of the annual turnover for companies with turnover of more than N10 billion).
For publicly quoted companies, the maximum payment earlier was N1 million per annum. Now, that amount is hiked to N25 million!
Quite incredibly, for non-listed companies, who were previously excluded, there is no cap, and it is linked to the turnover, irrespective of whether the company is profitable or not.
The FRCN Amendment Act, 2023, Section 33 Clause 3, imposes heavy penalties on a person or an entity failing to pay annual dues with 10% of the annual due for every month of default cumulatively until payment, liable to sanctions prescribed by the Council for any default of its agents, officer or personnel engaged in the financial reporting process for failure to comply with the provision of the act and in case of chief executive officer to a penalty as may be prescribed by the Council, or on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months.
The strict penalties and possible conviction to imprisonment could be construed as having the nature of a criminal law. Generally, non-payment of fees/dues typically results in other penalties or fines, and imprisonment provisions are applicable only in cases where non-payment is seen as an act of defiance or fraud.
The Section 34 of the Principle Act stipulates that the proceeds of the Fund established under Section 33 of the Act is to be applied for the expenditures of the Council, which incentivizes excessive generation of revenue and makes collection of the fees purely for administrative purposes.
Criminalizing non-payment of dues/fees, the utilization of which is more administrative in nature, makes the FRNC Amendment Act, 2023 a draconian law with no choice left for the entities to contest the charge, but to comply and pay the dues.
Ajayi-Kadir further posits that this is a direct assault on the government’s commitment to ease of doing business.
Apart from the reservations against its application to private companies, the astronomical increase for listed companies, the excessive charge on non-listed companies turnover, particularly for loss-making companies, and the commencement of implementation at this difficult time for manufacturers and other businesses amounts to yet another form of aggravated tyranny of regulation.
The investments in the productive sector of the economy will be negatively impacted if the continued implementation of this annual charge and the strenuous efforts of FRCN to execute the same are not halted.
MAN, therefore, implores the FRCN to be mindful of the potential negative impact of its continued administration of the fees on businesses and put it on hold.
As the umbrella body for manufacturers in Nigeria, we admonish the FRCN to await the enactment of the tax reform laws and realign its operations with the relevant provisions.
Urgent consideration and swift action from the government are needed to avert the unpleasant consequences of this annual fee. This will bring relief to anxious and long-suffering manufacturers and other business owners.
Quite importantly, it will boost our commitment to ease of doing and align with the broader objectives of the fiscal policy and tax reforms agenda of President Tinubu, which is primarily aimed at streamlining regulatory requirements, harmonizing taxes and revenue collection agencies, promoting business growth and cultivating a competitive landscape.
Business
Nigeria Is Practically Comatose – ADC, Tasks NASS, Onanuga
If borrowing is truly for development, let President Tinubu show Nigerians one tangible project his administration has delivered with its trillions of naira in loans, beyond the solar farm in the Presidential Villa.
The African Democratic Congress Presidential Campaign Council (ADC-PCC) said on Friday Nigeria is practically comatose in all aspects, declaring that history will not forgive the 10th National Assembly if it stands by while the country is plunged deeper into a cycle of unsustainable indebtedness.
Kola Ologbondiyan
Director, Media and Publicity
ADC PCC, was reacting to statement credited to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, through his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, declaring that “The Question Is What We Build, Not How Much We Borrow.”
The ADC-PCC challenged President Tinubu to identify what his administration has actually built with the mountain of loans it has accumulated since he assumed office in 2023 insisting that Nigerians have seen little or no tangible returns on the country’s growing debt burden.
Ologbondiyan said it was particularly disturbing that Mr Onanuga would attempt to dress the President in borrowed garments by speaking about infrastructure and development when, according to the ADC-PCC, the administration has failed to demonstrate commensurate achievements despite unprecedented borrowing.
He alleged that the only visible project associated with the administration’s concern for electricity is a solar farm installed to guarantee power supply within the comfort of the Presidential Villa, while millions of Nigerians continue to grapple with unreliable electricity.
Ologbondiyan pointed out that “For three and a half wasted years, Tinubu government has borrowed without restraint and built nothing. No value, no legacy, no impact.
“Except for projects inherited from the late President Muhammadu Buhari, many of the projects being advertised by the Tinubu administration are nothing but audio projects.
They exist only on paper, as conceptual designs or as announcements on newspaper pages and television screens.
“Under Tinubu, virtually every project exists in a press statement.
“Where is the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway? Where is the Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway?
Where is the Trans-Sahara Superhighway? Where are the promised electricity grid upgrades? All propaganda, no commensurate progress, just media hype from Bayo Onanuga and his team.
“Even the Abuja-Kaduna-Kano Highway, awarded more than eight years ago, remains a source of concern to motorists. Its prolonged construction and delays tell the story of APC governance.
“Mr President must wake up and confront the reality facing Nigerians, if there is still left between now and January 16.
Citizens are hungry and enduring excruciating hardship. People are dying from hunger, insecurity and deprivation, while the government remains preoccupied with propaganda and self-congratulatory statements.
“These are the real signposts of what the Tinubu administration has built in almost four years.
“Today, ministries are barely functioning, agencies are struggling, and critical directorates are failing to deliver. Nigeria is practically comatose.
“The Tinubu Presidency came into power without a convincing blueprint or workable ideas and, after almost four years, has offered Nigerians little beyond failure, hardship, poverty and insecurity.
“If borrowing is truly for development, let President Tinubu show Nigerians one tangible project his administration has delivered with its trillions of naira in loans, beyond the solar farm in the Presidential Villa.
“The only thing this administration has successfully built is hardship.
“We appeal to international donors, development partners and financial institutions to exercise greater scrutiny and insist on accountability, transparency and prudence before extending further loans to Nigeria.
“Borrowing is not inherently wrong when the benefits translate into improved living conditions for citizens. What is unacceptable is a situation in which the country continues to accumulate debts without corresponding benefits for the people.
“Nigerians must not be compelled to continue financing the luxury, proligacy and privileged lifestyle of those in power while ordinary citizens wallow in poverty.
“Future generations should not be burdened with debts incurred without demonstrable benefits to them.
“The National Assembly must rise to its constitutional responsibility and save the country from being mortgaged through indiscriminate borrowings. It must stop acting as a rubber stamp for every loan request and defend the economic future of Nigeria.
Business
Trustfund rebranding to PT Pensions
“While our name is set to change, our commitment to you remains steadfast,” said the statement.
Trustfund Pensions Limited and Premium Pensions Limited have approached the final stages of their merger and integration, as Premium Trustfund Pensions Limited (PT Pensions).
This is disclosed in its latest Newsletter emailed to its customers across the country .
” While our name is set to change, our commitment to you remains steadfast,” said the statement.
Business
Who Owns Temu? Inside PDD Holdings and Its Business
The “Shop Like a Billionaire” slogan promotes affordable abundance, but the practical distinction is simple: The platform owner and the seller of a particular product aren’t necessarily the same company.
If you’re wondering who owns Temu, the answer is PDD Holdings Inc., the parent company behind both Temu and Pinduoduo.
But that doesn’t mean one person owns the shopping platform outright: PDD Holdings is a publicly traded company with many shareholders.
Howstuffworks reported that the corporate ownership becomes clearer when you separate three things: the shopping brand, the companies operating it and the holding company above them.
How PDD Holdings Owns Temu
Think of PDD Holdings as the corporate umbrella.
Temu and Pinduoduo are separate e-commerce platforms within that group, not two names for the same storefront. Pinduoduo serves the Chinese market, while Temu targets shoppers internationally.
The parent completed its initial public offering in July 2018 as Pinduoduo Inc. It changed its name to PDD Holdings Inc. in February 2023.
Today, PDD stock trades on Nasdaq under the ticker PDD; the U.S.-listed securities are American depositary shares, each representing four Class A ordinary shares.
Buying those securities gives investors an interest in the parent, not a separately listed Temu business.
To understand major shareholders, institutional investors and voting rights, consult the company’s SEC filings.
Share ownership and voting power aren’t necessarily identical.
Where Colin Huang Fits In
Colin Huang, also known as Huang Zheng, founded Pinduoduo in 2015.
The company founder stepped down as chief executive officer in July 2020, when Chen Lei succeeded him, and left the chairman’s role in March 2021. Both departures came before PDD Holdings introduced Temu in September 2022.
That timing matters: Huang founded the business from which the group developed, but describing him as Temu’s sole owner confuses company history with corporate ownership.
Why Temu Has Several Geographic Connections
The corporate structure spans several jurisdictions. PDD Holdings has Cayman Islands incorporation, while its 2024 annual report identifies its principal executive offices in Dublin, Ireland. A legal home and company headquarters can be different places.
Whaleco Inc., a Delaware-incorporated subsidiary within the group, operates Temu in the United States.
Temu has described Boston, Massachusetts, as its base. Whaleco Technology Limited, an Irish group company, operates Temu in certain other markets.
None of those addresses erases the group’s Chinese roots. They describe different pieces of an international business, rather than competing answers to who owns it.
What Temu’s Marketplace Actually Does
Temu’s 2022 U.S. launch began its global expansion. Its business model centers on an online marketplace connecting shoppers with third-party sellers, including Chinese manufacturers and merchants, rather than manufacturing everything itself. Cross-border e-commerce — selling goods across national borders — helped underpin that growth.
The “Shop Like a Billionaire” slogan promotes affordable abundance, but the practical distinction is simple: The platform owner and the seller of a particular product aren’t necessarily the same company.
Source: Howstuffworks
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