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Good Times For Access Bank Staff, As Herbert Wigwe Gives Workers Surprise Salary Increment.

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Herbert Wigwe

Herbert Wigwe

It was indeed a Merry Monday at Access Bank Plc yesterday as members of staff were pleasantly surprised by a salary increase in spite of the prevailing economic realities in Nigeria.

The Bank’s leadership, headed by Herbert Wigwe, approved this increase to cushion the effect of rising costs in the country. This information was obtained from members of staff who were delighted by this gesture from the Bank.

An employee who confirmed this in confidence said: “I am speechless. I don’t think anyone saw this coming, this is happening at a time when my friends in other banks are losing their jobs. It feels great to be supported in such trying times. Thank you Uncle Herbie”

Wigwe was unavailable for comments as at press time.

BIG STORY

Federal Government To Arraign Binance Executives Over ‘Tax Evasion’ On April 4

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On April 4, the federal authorities will file charges against senior executives of the cryptocurrency company Binance, Tigran Gambaryan, and Nadeem Anjarwalla, for allegedly engaging in “tax evasion.”

Anjarwalla is Binance’s regional manager for Africa, while Gambaryan oversees the company’s compliance with financial crimes.

The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) charged Binance with a crime on March 25th for “tax evasion.”

The service claims that the action is intended to maintain national economic integrity and fiscal discipline.

The lawsuit, designated as suit number FHC/ABJ/CR/115/2024, is said to “implicate Binance with a four-count tax evasion accusation”.

However, on Thursday, NAN reported the federal government will charge the three defendants before Emeka Nwite, the presiding judge, at the federal high court (FHC) in Abuja on a four-count charge.

Despite not being a vacation judge, according to the report, the chief judge granted the fiat for the judge to oversee the case during vacation because it is a matter of critical national interest.

The lawsuit comes a month after Anjarwalla and Gambaryan were detained by the Nigerian authorities.

Anjarwalla and Gambaryan had flown into Nigeria but had their passports seized by ONSA.

On March 12, Anjarwalla was transferred to a local hospital after he fell ill while in detention in Nigeria.

However, on March 25, Anjarwalla escaped from custody and fled Nigeria with a smuggled passport.

Meanwhile, Gambaryan, on March 28, sued Nuhu Ribadu, the national security adviser (NSA) and the Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), alleging violation of his fundamental rights.

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BIG STORY

NCC Orders Deactivation Of All Registered SIMs Without Proper NIN Linkage

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Telecommunications operators in the country are getting ready for another round of phone line disconnections for subscribers who have not linked their National Identification Numbers (NIN) with their SIM cards.

In accordance with a regulation from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), which requires all registered SIMs without adequate NIN linking to be either repaired or entirely disconnected from networks, the disconnections are scheduled to occur on Friday, March 29.

In an effort to counter illegal acts including banditry and kidnapping and ultimately strengthen national security, the government launched the NIN-SIM Linkage process on February 28, 2024.

There are hints of a potential third phase in April 2024.

Operators have reportedly collaborated with the NCC in implementing the directive, demonstrating their dedication to national security objectives and ensuring full compliance by the specified deadlines.

The second phase will target subscribers with five or more SIMs from a single operator that lack verified NIN-SIM linkages.

The third phase, scheduled to start on April 15, will focus on subscribers with four SIMs or fewer and unverified NINs.

While telecom companies are advocating for a review and extension of the April deadline for the third phase, indications from the NCC suggest a firm commitment to the established timelines.

The first phase resulted in the barring of 40 million lines, including approximately 17 million active SIMs without NIN submissions and 23 million inactive SIMs lacking NINs over the past year.

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BIG STORY

European Union Probes Google, Apple, Meta Over Potential Breach Of Digital Market Rules

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Due to anticompetitive behaviour, the European Union (EU) claims to have launched five non-compliance investigations against Apple, Meta, and Alphabet, the parent firm of Google.

The corporations will be investigated for possible violations of the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which was implemented in 2022, according to a statement released by the EU on Monday.

The union declared that it would look into five distinct potential non-compliance incidents.

The economic group further declared that it will look into the possibility that Apple and Alphabet are impeding apps’ ability to freely interact with users and enter into contracts with them.

In addition, the commission said it will look into whether Apple is not giving users enough choice, whether Meta is unfairly demanding individuals to pay to avoid their data being used for advertisements, and whether Google prefers the firm’s own goods and services in search results.

Speaking on the issue, Margrethe Vestager, EU’s vice-president in charge of competition policy, said the investigations concern Alphabet’s rules ‘on steering’ in Google Play and self-preferencing in Google search.

The probe, according to Vestager, also concerns Apple’s rules on steering in the App Store and on choosing browsers and changing defaults, and Meta’s ‘pay or consent model’.

“We suspect that the suggested solutions put forward by the three companies do not fully comply with the DMA,” she said.

“We will now investigate the companies’ compliance with the DMA, to ensure open and contestable digital markets in Europe.”

On his part, Thierry Breton, commissioner for internal market, said the EU has been in discussions with gatekeepers for months to help them adapt, “and we can already see changes happening on the market”.

“But we are not convinced that the solutions by Alphabet, Apple and Meta respect their obligations for a fairer and more open digital space for European citizens and businesses,” he said.

Breton added that if investigation concludes that there is lack of full compliance with the DMA, gatekeepers could face heavy fines.

Meanwhile, the commission said it intends to conclude the proceedings within 12 months.

If warranted following the investigation, the EU said it will inform the concerned gatekeepers of its preliminary findings and explain the measures it is considering taking or the gatekeeper should take in order to effectively address the its concerns.

In case of an infringement, the commission said it may impose fines up to 10 percent of the companies’ entire worldwide turnover.

The EU said such fines could increase to 20 percent in case of repeated infringement.

The commission added that in case of systematic infringements, it may also adopt additional remedies.

Six companies have obligations under the DMA, EU said, including Alphabet, Apple, Meta, Amazon, Microsoft and ByteDance.

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