Illegal investment operations: Court slams 21 companies ₦30m fine each

Stanley Ihedigbo

A Federal High Court sitting in Lafia, Nasarawa State, has convicted and sentenced 21 companies to a fine of ₦30 million each for allegedly operating investment management schemes without valid licences from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) disclosed this in a press release issued by its Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale.

According to the commission, Justice Anyalewa Onoja-Alapa convicted the companies following their arraignment by the EFCC’s Abuja Zonal Directorate.

The companies were each charged with a one-count offence bordering on operating as a specialised business of another financial institution without a valid licence, contrary to Section 57(1) of the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act, 2020.

The affected companies are Ngwuoke Daniels Technologies; Credio Banco Ltd; Digital Company Ltd; Co Request Capital Nigeria Ltd; Mega Drop Quality Stores Ltd; Norland Global Ltd; Oxford International; Creative Agriculture Cooperative; Qnet Nigeria Ltd; Qnet Professional Skill Academy Ltd; Mastermind Energy & Agro Nigeria Ltd; Atus West Africa Investment Company; Eatrich360 Farms; Matag Agro General Services; Viables X Agribusiness Ltd; Kwakol Markets Ltd; Light Shade International Ltd; Value Growth Ltd; B12 Synergy Nigeria Ltd; Phresh Farm Ltd; and Omega Pro Global Resources.

The EFCC said the court also ordered the companies to pay an additional ₦200,000 for each day they committed the offence.
According to the commission, the charge against Mega Drop Quality Stores Ltd alleged that the company advertised and operated financial investment management services in Abuja in 2025 without a valid SEC licence.

A similar allegation was contained in the charge against Ngwuoke Daniels Technologies, which was also accused of operating financial investment management services without the requisite regulatory authorisation.

The EFCC stated that representatives of the companies were absent when the charges were read in court. Following an application by the prosecution counsel, Nasir Umar, the court entered pleas of not guilty on behalf of the companies and commenced trial.

The prosecution relied on witnesses and documentary evidence contained in its proof of evidence. The documents tendered included intelligence reports, statements by investigating officers, letters detailing investigative activities, and responses from the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and the SEC.

The commission said the prosecutions followed actionable intelligence linking the companies to suspected investment fraud and unlicensed investment operations.

It added that the companies’ promoters had been invited for interrogation on December 22, 2022, and January 12, 2023, but allegedly failed to honour the invitations. The EFCC said the promoters evaded interrogation over a period of five years, prompting the prosecution of the companies.