Etisalat Nigeria changes name to 9Mobile

This is coming in days after the global franchise, Etisalat International ended its management agreement with its Nigerian arm.

Last week, Nigerian regulators made attempts to save Etisalat Nigeria from collapse after talks with its lenders to renegotiate a $1.2 billion loan failed.

All UAE shareholders of Etisalat Nigeria have exited the company and have left the board and management.

It would also be noted that the chairman of Etisalat Nigeria, Hakeem Belo Osagie resigned and several other members of the board have also stepped down.

However, discussions were ongoing with Etisalat Nigeria to provide technical support, adding that it can use the brand for another three-weeks before phasing it out till this latest development.

At the end of today’s management meeting of the telecom firm in Lagos, 9Mobile was adopted by the company as the new brand name.

An announcement by the new management to the effect will be made soon.

Etisalat debunks alleged EFCC investigation, 420% loan repaid

ETISALAT Nigeria has refuted media reports that it is being investigated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), following a petition to “the Federal Government asking that Etisalat be investigated” on how the funds from the syndicated loans were utilized. 

The Telecommunication firm, in a press statement issued yesterday by the VP, Regulatory & Corporate Affairs, Ibrahim Dikko, stated that for the avoidance of doubt that the reports are patently false and most unfortunate considering the damage such misleading information can have not only on its business, but indeed on the telecommunications industry and the country as a whole. 

It would be recalled that $1.2bn loan, a medium-term seven-year facility, was obtained by Etisalat Nigeria for the purpose of expanding its network and improving the quality of service on its network. It stressed that a simple interrogation of the rigorous process for securing a syndicated loan from a consortium of reputable banks would have exposed the truth to the original writer of the story and other media channels who have subsequently re-circulated the falsehood without interrogation or verification. 

It said that concerned parties have access to their books and do not require an investigation into how the loan sum was utilized adding that all of the infrastructure investment and services for which the loan was secured, were paid through the banks
and these are verifiable. According to the statement, “It is indeed crucial for the media to correctly inform the general public by providing the needful macro-economic context around which the challenges we encountered with meeting up with the loan obligation occurred. 

“The economic downturn of 2015 and sharp devaluations of the naira negatively impacted on the dollar-denominated loan by driving up the loan value, thus prompting Etisalat to request a loan restructuring from the consortium of banks. “Contrary to the widely reported misrepresentations about Etisalat Nigeria’s debt obligation to the consortium of 13 banks, it has become pertinent to set the records straight. “Prior to this time, Etisalat had in fact consistently and conscientiously met up with its payment obligation. 

As at today, we can categorically state that the outstanding loan sum to the consortium stands at $227m and N113bn, a total of about $574m if the naira portion is converted to US Dollars. “This in essence means almost half of the original loan of $1.2bn, has been repaid. Etisalat continued to service the loan up until February 2017, when discussions with the banks regarding the repayment restructuring commenced,” it stated.

 The telco however said that it remains accessible and available to the media to clarify or verify information when required while appealling to media partners to continue to uphold the ethics of the profession by exercising some restraint particularly in the publication of such misleading and damaging information.

NCC, CBN prevail on banks against take-over of Etisalat

Reprieve appears to have come the way of embattled telecoms operator, Etisalat Nigeria, which three Nigerian banks, Wednesday, got approval to take over after it allegedly failed to repay a loan of over N541 billion it secured from them in 2015.

This is after the telecoms regulator, Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, and its banking sector counterpart, Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, yesterday, waded into the matter again. The meeting between Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, Prof. Umar Danbatta, the Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele, and their teams, was held at the CBN headquarters in Abuja.
The meeting was said to have been convened by the CBN at the instance of NCC, to further deliberate on how best to stave off the attempt by the banks to take over Etisalat.

It was gathered that at the end of the meeting, CBN agreed to invite Etisalat management and the banks to a meeting today, towards finding an amicable resolution. The NCC, as a regulator of the telecoms industry, had moved quickly to intervene earlier in the week by reaching out to the CBN, convinced of the negative impact such a bank take over will have on the industry.
NCC said it was worried about the fate of the over 20 million Etisalat subscribers and the wrong signals this may send to potential investors in the telecoms industry. The three Nigerian banks owed by Etisalat are Guaranty Trust Bank, Access Bank and Zenith Bank. Despite earlier interventions by the telecom regulator, the banks got approval to take over the telecoms company, effective last Wednesday.

A close source at NCC stated that the commission tried its best to ensure the situation didn’t degenerate to take over of the telecoms company but the pressure from the banks became so intense that it had to allow the action. The source said the issue had lingered for a while, with the NCC believing it could provide some middle ground for both parties to come to a truce but unfortunately, the banks feared that inability to recover the loan could expose them to the Asset Management Company of Nigeria, AMCON, which had been demanding immediate cut down on the rate of their non-performing loans.
The loan facility, totalling $1.72 billion (about N541.8 billion) involving a foreign-backed guaranty bond, was for Etisalat to turn around its network and expand its operations in Nigeria. However, the banks claimed that Etisalat has failed to service the debt as was agreed since 2016. They subsequently reported Etisalat to banking sector regulator, the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, and its communications sector counterpart, the NCC.
There were also reports as at Wednesday that Etisalat Nigeria was seriously in talks with local banks to renegotiate the terms of the $1.2 billion loan.

The latest development, may not be far from the strategies it took to avert the embarrassment of being taken over by the banks.

[REVEALED] Three Nigerian Banks Set To Take Over Etisalat Over N541.8bn Debt

A consortium of some foreign and Nigerian banks including Guaranty Trust Bank, Access Bank and Zenith Bank are set to take over Telecommunication giant, Etisalat over N541.8bn debt.
This is despite the intervention of the Nigerian Communication Commission, NCC, to broker a peaceful resolution between the telecoms and the consortium of banks.
The consortium has been having a running battle with the mobile telephone operator over a loan facility totalling $1.72 billion (about N541.8 billion) obtained in 2015.
The loan, which involved a foreign-backed guaranty bond, was for Etisalat to finance a major network rehabilitation and expansion of its operational base in Nigeria.
However, following the failure of the company to meet its debt servicing schedule agreed since 2016, the three Nigerian banks, prodded by their foreign partners, reported Etisalat to banking sector regulator, the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, and its communications sector counterpart, the NCC.


Although Etisalat blamed its inability to fulfil its obligation to the banks on the current economic recession in Nigeria, the banks said their attempt to recover the loan by all means was fuelled by the pressure from the Asset Management Company of Nigeria, AMCON, demanding immediate cut down on the rate of their non-performing loans.
PREMIUM TIMES gathered through a senior official of one of the banks that one of the options they have proposed to Etisalat management as a middle way out of the crisis was for it to request for a bankruptcy status.
The official, who requested that his name should not be revealed, since he was not authorised to speak on behalf of the consortium, said the bankruptcy option would require having receivership management appointed by the banks to oversee its operations.
But, the NCC appears not to be favourably disposed to the takeover proposal, the source said, as it believes Etisalat was not only a viable going concern, but also willing and able to negotiate its loan servicing.
However, atop source at the NCC said late Tuesday that the commission had approved the takeover, which is expected to occur today, March 7.

Etisalat Sues MTN Over Visafone Acquisition.

          

Etisalat Nigeria has sued MTN Nigeria and Visafone Ltd, challenging MTN’s use of the 800megahertz (MHZ) spectrum following the acquisition of Visafone.

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Check Out Genevieve Nnaji's First TV Commercial For Etisalat

Check out Genevieve Nnaji in a Lamboghnini for Etisalat’s first TV commercial with Nigerian Hollywood actor Hakeem Kae-Kazim. Nnaji was unveiled as a brand ambassador last week, but Kae-Kazim was already on the telecoms company’s payroll as an ambassador.

In other news, the Hollywood actor, who starred as Colonel Iké Dubaku in season 7 of the Fox television series 24, told HipHopWorldMagazine.com in an exclusive interview that he recently acted alongside Ms Nnaji in a Nollywood movie that would be out soon. Watch out for the full interview on this site today.

Check out the commercial below:

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SEE Genevieve Nnaji’s Christian Louboutin N600,000 Shoes.#Biggirlthings.

When you are Big You do Big Things Imagine wearing 2 plots of Land on your foot.

During the event in which Genevieve was unveiled as an Etisalat ambassador Genny Looked Glamorous For the occasion, she rocked a mix print shift dress which she paired with A Christian Louboutin pointy pumps which cost Over £2,395 Well that is Called Class!

Nigerian Idol Set To Hold Auditions In Makurdi ,Benue State.(Full details here).

The  search for the brightest music talents to grace the stage of one of the biggest reality music competitions, the Nigerian Idol starts soon. The fourth season of the Etisalat–sponsored Nigerian Idol show will hold auditions first time in the city Makurdi on February 15th at Smileview Hotel Extension.

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Etisalat-Sponsored Nigerian Idol 4 Kicks-Off With Auditions In Lagos,PHCourt,Benin And Makurdi.

All is set for the nation-wide search for the brightest music talents to grace the stage of one of the biggest reality music competitions, the Nigerian Idol. The fourth season of the Etisalat–sponsored Nigerian Idol show will hold auditions in the cities of Lagos, Port-Harcourt, Benin, Calabar and for the first time Makurdi from January 25th till February 23rd 2014.
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Etisalat Reacts To Julius Agwu's Claim That He's Line Was Blocked.

Last few days we reported here that Julius Agwu filed a suit against telecoms giant, Etisalat claiming they illegally blocked and swapped his phone number.
Etisalat’s Public Relations Manager, Chineze Amanfo, while reacting to the allegation through an email sent to PM News, stated that contrary to the reportage of the issue on the blogs and news sites, a SIM swap was performed on the said line after the requester provided the company’s customer care executives with necessary SIM replacement information, in accordance with laid down NCC regulations and process for SIM swap.
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Julius Agwu Sues Etisalat For Blocking His Business Line,Demands N100M.

Comedian Julius Agwu has dragged telecoms giant Etisalat to court for blocking his business line. He is demanding for N100million as compensation for jobs lost, contact lost, for the inconveniences, and for being mistreated by Etisalat staff.

Below is a statement from his lawyer, Festus Keyamo...
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Mary J Blige Performed At The "Sister With Soul" Concert On Friday,See More Pictures Inside.

Mary J Blige performed in Lagos Friday night at the ‘Sisters With Soul’ concert which held at the Expo Hall, Eko Hotel.

The queen of ‘Hip-Hop Soul’ touched down at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos Friday afternoon, September 27, 2013 and lodged at the Eko Hotels and Suites, Victoria Island.

The ‘Sisters with Soul’ concert featured Mary J as the lead act with supporting performances from Seyi Shey, Zaina, Chidinma, Niyola, Lola Rae, Emma Nyra, Eva and DJ Cuppy.

Find photos below: