Finance

We’re Profiling Rich Nigerians for Tax Payment – Adeosun

Published

7 years ago

August 4, 2017

We’re Profiling Rich Nigerians for Tax Payment

The Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, on Thursday said that the Federal Government was currently profiling high net worth individuals to ensure that what they currently own as assets correspond with the amount they were paying as taxes.

She said this via a video posted on her Facebook page where she responded to questions from Nigerians about the implementation of the Voluntary Asset and Income Declaration Scheme.

The VAIDS offers a grace period from July 1, 2017 to March 31, 2018, for tax defaulters to voluntarily pay back to the government what they owed.

In exchange for full and honest declaration, the government promises to waive penalties that should have been levied and also waive the interest that should have been paid on overdue taxes.

In addition, those who declare their tax obligation honestly will not be subjected to any investigation or tax audit after the nine-month grace period.

The minister said Nigeria had one of the lowest tax compliance rates in the world with a tax to Gross Domestic Product ratio currently standing at six per cent.

She stated that with such a low tax-to-GDP ratio, the government needed to do all it could to shore up the tax revenue.

Adeosun explained that in the last 15 months, the Ministry of Finance had been building a database of high net worth individuals through information received from both local and international sources.

For instance, she explained that while the assets of some of the high net worth individuals had been obtained by the ministry through local sources, their assets owned abroad were obtained from the Panama Papers as well as other information supplied by countries, which Nigeria had tax treaties with.

The minister said a situation whereby policemen and other low income earners were paying taxes through deductions from their salaries, while high net worth individuals who should pay more, were evading payment was unacceptable to the government.

She added that the ministry would use technology to improve the rate of tax compliance.

Adeosun stated, “We only have 14 million taxpayers out of the 70 million active people. We are sharing tax information with other countries and this will help us draw a picture of taxpayers and their lifestyles.

“We are profiling high net worth individuals to enable us determine if what they pay as tax corresponds with their lifestyles. For 15 months, we have been doing that at the Ministry of Finance, and we are looking at their assets not only in Nigeria, but abroad.”

She explained that the Federal Government would implement its policy on luxury taxes.

The minister added, “We signed something yesterday (Wednesday) on luxury goods like champagne, brandy, whiskey, wines, and high-end jewellery. We’ve signed something that will bill access charge on first class and business class tickets; we are just doing the final parts of the implementation and we also want to try and amend the taxpayer book on high-end luxury cars.

“If we move our tax-to-GDP ratio up, it means we will be able to provide more services to our people. Many of the things we are not able to do are functions of the fact that we don’t have enough money.”

She explained that for the country to be called a rich nation, the citizens must be ready to pay the right amount of taxes to enable the government build roads, schools and other infrastructure.

Adesoun added, “We need to build more schools; we need to build more hospitals; we need to build more roads. This is not rocket science. Every country has challenges; there is nothing we are facing that other countries haven’t faced. Every poor nation has a very poor tax compliance rate, and every rich nation has a high compliance rate. So, we want to be a prosperous nation.

“So, what is in it for the citizens? If everybody pays, there will be far more money in the pool to be spent on the services that we need.

“These things are what we call public goods, and they are funded from taxes. If you have been all around the country, you’ve seen the need, you’ve seen the number of people that are living in poverty; we can lift people from poverty if we have the right money.”

She expressed satisfaction with the rate of response from Nigerians on the VAIDS scheme, adding that many companies are now willing to take advantage of the nine months amnesty period.

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Samed Olukoya

Is the CEO and Founder of Investors King Limited. He is a seasoned foreign exchange research analyst and a published author on Yahoo Finance, Business Insider, Nasdaq, Entrepreneur.com, Investorplace, and other prominent platforms. With over two decades of experience in global financial markets, Olukoya is well-recognized in the industry.

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Banking Sector

UBA Grows Interest Income Jump by 169% to N1.799 Trillion

Published

2 days ago

October 21, 2024

Samed Olukoya

United Bank for Africa, Nigeria’s leading financial institution with operations across the African continent, on Monday reported a 169.9% jump in interest income from N666.291 billion recorded in the first nine months of 2023 to N1.799 trillion in the nine months through September 2024.

In the financial statement obtained by Investors King, the lender’s interest expense inched slightly higher to N695.571 billion, 211.6% from N223.209 billion filed in the corresponding period of 2023.

Growth was broad-based as net interest income rose by 149% from N443.082 billion in 2023 to N1.103 trillion in 2024 while net fee and commission income stood at N233.853 billion, up 105% from N114.286 billion in 2023.

The bank’s total non-interest income moderated slightly to N435.840 billion. However, operating income improved by 51.25% from N1.017 trillion to N1.539 trillion.

Similarly, net operating income after impairment loss on loans and receivables appreciated 62.16% to N1.416 trillion.

Profit before tax rose by N101.392 billion to N603.483 billion in September 2024.

Speaking on the strong performance of the company in the first half (H1) of the year, Oliver Alawuba, the Group Managing Director/CEO said as of H1 2024, which constitutes the majority of the current performance, the economic environment remained challenging across the regions where we operate.

High inflation, rising debt levels, increasing interest rates, and tighter monetary policies have created significant pressure on economies globally. Despite these headwinds, our Bank has demonstrated resilience.

In H1 2024, UBA Group delivered strong double-digit growth across high-quality and sustainable revenue streams. This performance reflects our disciplined execution of strategic goals, focusing on balance sheet expansion, transaction banking, and digital banking businesses across our markets.

Profit before Tax: We achieved a robust Profit Before Tax of N401.6 billion, reflecting our ability to manage risks effectively amidst macroeconomic volatility.
Customer Deposits: Our deposits grew by 34%, from N17.4 trillion at year-end 2023 to 2 trillion in H1 2024, demonstrating the trust and loyalty of our customers.
Total Assets: We saw a 37% growth in total assets, reaching N28.3 trillion, up from N20.7 trillion at FYE 2023. This growth was driven by strong customer relationships and our ability to capitalize on opportunities across geographies.
Net Interest Income: Our intermediation business posted impressive growth, with net interest income expanding by 143% year-on-year to N675 billion, further underlining the strength of our core banking operations.
Digital Banking & Payments: Digital Banking income surged by 107.8% YoY to N106 billion, while funds transfer and remittance fees rose 188.7% and 228%, respectively. We continue to lead in digital banking and payment solutions, helping drive financial inclusion across Africa.
Trade Facilitation: Income from trade transactions grew 83% to N18 billion as we strengthened our role in facilitating intra-regional and international trade.

Our strategy of investing in technology, innovation, and data analytics continues to yield significant returns, positioning us as a leader in digital transformation.

Finance

FAAC Distributes N1.298trn to FG, States, LGCs

Published

5 days ago

October 18, 2024

Iyanuoluwa Martins

The Federal Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC) has shared N1.298 trillion among the Federal Government, states, and Local Government Councils (LGCs) from the revenue of September 2024.

A communique issued at the end of FAAC meeting for October held on Thursday in Abuja said N1.298 trillion total distributable revenue comprised distributable statutory revenue of N124.716 billion, and distributable Value Added Tax (VAT) revenue of N543.518 billion.

It also comprised Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL) revenue of N18. 445 billion, Exchange Difference revenue of N462.191 billion and Augmentation of N150.000 billion.

It said that a total revenue of N2.258 trillion was available in the month of September.

“Total deduction for cost of collection was N80.993 billion, while total transfers, interventions and refunds was N878.946 billion,” it said.

According to the communiqué, gross statutory revenue of N1.043 trillion was received in September 2024, which was lower than the sum of N1.221 trillion received in August by N177.426 billion.

It said that gross revenue of N583.675 billion was available from VAT in September, higher than the N573.341 billion available in the month of August by N10.334 billion.

“From the N1.298 trillion total distributable revenue, the Federal Government received a total sum of N424.867 billion, and the state governments received a total sum of N453.724 billion.

“The LGCs received a total sum of N329.864 billion and a total sum of N90.415 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) was shared to the benefiting states as derivation revenue,” it said.

On the N124.716 billion statutory revenue, the communiqué said that the Federal Government received N43.037 billion and the state governments received N21.829 billion, while the LGCs received N16.829 billion.

It said that the sum of N43.021 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) was shared to the benefiting states as derivation revenue.

“From the N543.518 billion VAT revenue, the Federal Government received N81.528 billion, the state governments received N271.759 billion and the LGCs received N190.231 billion,” it said.

It said that in September, Oil and Gas Royalty, Excise Duty, EMTL and CET Levies increased considerably while VAT and Import Duty increased marginally.

It added that Petroleum Profit Tax (PPT), Companies Income Tax (CIT) and others recorded significant decreases.

Finance

Former AGF, EFCC Opt For Plea Bargain Settlement in Alleged N1.6bn Fraud Case

Published

1 week ago

October 15, 2024

Ugwoke Ogbodo

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has informed a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja of its plan to settle out of court in a subsisting N1.6 billion fraud matter against a former acting Accountant-General of the Federation (AGF), Anamekwe Nwabuoku, pending before the court.

Counsel to the anti-graft body, Ogechi Ujam, informed the presiding judge, Justice James Omotosho upon resumed hearing on Monday of its resolve to opt for plea bargain agreement with the defendant.

When the matter was called, Ujam told the court that on the last adjourned date, Nwabuoku and his co-defendant, Felix Nweke, had submitted proposal for settlement out of court.

She said the parties in the charge had agreed and that the agreement had been submitted to the EFCC’s Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, for approval.

The lawyer to the EFCC then asked the court for a date to file the agency’s plea bargain agreement and amend the charge of the defendants.

In the same vein, Nwabuoku’s lawyer, Isidal Udenko, and Emeka Onyeaka, who represented Nweke, also admitted opting for a plea bargain.

Justice Omotosho subsequently adjourned the matter till December 2 for the adoption of a plea bargain agreement.

Recall that the anti-graft agency had preferred an 11-count money laundering charge against the duo.

Nwabuoku and Nweke, a former Deputy Director in the Ministry of Defence, are being prosecuted for alleged money laundering offences to the tune of N1.6 billion.

While Nwabuoku is the 1st defendant in the charge marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/240/24 dated May 20 and filed May 27 by Ekele Iheanacho, Nweke is the 2nd defendant.