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Breaking News: Tingo Group Announces Completion Of Investigation Into Allegations Made Against the Company

Published

1 year ago

August 30, 2023

Editor

By Michael Effiong

Tingo Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: TIO) (“Tingo” or the “Company”), a profitable and fast growing fintech, agri-fintech and food company has announced to the international financial market that it has completed the investigation of the allegations made by short seller Hindenburg Research (“Hindenburg”), that relate directly to the Company and its businesses.

At the direction of the Company’s independent directors, independent counsel investigated certain of the Hindenburg allegations and provided the independent directors with an interim report summarizing evidence it had reviewed, along with items requiring further investigation. The Company’s outside counsel then conducted its own investigation into the allegations, which included following up on the items identified by independent counsel. Based on the Company’s outside counsel’s investigation and further investigative work of its own, the Company has concluded it can now provide the following response to the allegations in the Hindenburg report:

Agri-Fintech Holdings, Inc. Resignation of Director: Christophe Charlier was a co-Chairman of OTC-listed company, Agri-Fintech Holdings, Inc., which sold Tingo Mobile Limited to the Company on November 30, 2022. Mr. Charlier has never been a member of the Company’s Board of Directors, nor has he been involved in the management of the Company. In his resignation letter, which was filed with the SEC, Mr. Charlier complained only of a lack of communication and teamwork at Agri-Fintech Holdings.

Tingo Foods Revenue and Operating Margin: The revenue reported by Tingo Foods in Q1 2023 and its operating margin of 24.8 % has been confirmed.

Tingo Foods Business Relationships: During the period from September 2022 to March 31, 2023, Tingo Foods purchased its raw crops from two organizations in Nigeria, including the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (“AFAN”), which delivered the crops to third-party food processors. Tingo Foods then sold the processed food to several large wholesalers in Nigeria.

Food Processing Facility: The construction of the Tingo Foods processing facility in Nigeria is well underway, with food and beverage processing operations expected to commence in Q2 2024. The images and renderings used for the Foods Processing Facility’s groundbreaking ceremony in February 2023 and in early presentational materials were stock images provided by an external marketing company, whereas specific renderings of the actual facility are currently being utilized. The Company has contracts in place with the construction company for the project and with Evtec Energy Plc and TAE Power Solutions Limited for the construction of a solar power plant to power the processing facility. Evtec Energy Plc is a special purpose vehicle for the project, whereas TAE Power Solutions Limited is a part of a multinational group that has been trading for more than 25 years.

Tingo Foods Sale of Inventory: The inventory held by Tingo Foods at the time it was purchased by the Company in February 2023 was sold to a customer on March 20, 2023, the proceeds for which were received on June 29, 2023.

Tingo Mobile Business Relationships with Farming Organizations: Tingo Mobile leases mobile phones to four co-operatives and farming organizations: the Kebbi (Dala) Multi-Purpose Cooperative Society (“Kebbi”), the Ailoje Royal Farms Multi-Purpose Cooperative (“Ailoje”), the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (“AFAN”), and the Ashanti Investment Trust (“Ashanti”). The two farming cooperatives referenced in the Hindenburg report were Kebbi and Ailoje, to which Tingo Mobile has leased 4.5 million and 4.844 million phones respectively. The relationships with all the co-operatives and farming organizations have been confirmed.

Mobile License: Tingo Mobile does not directly provide airtime and data services on the phones it leases to customers, or through its Nwassa platform. Such services are currently provided by a third-party vendor. Tingo Mobile therefore does not require a Mobile License from the Nigerian Communications Commission. This arrangement allows Tingo Mobile’s customers to choose the best network provider for their location from Airtel, MTN, 9 Mobile and Globacom. Tingo Mobile earns a commission on the airtime and data services purchased by its customers, which it receives from its vendor, and which were previously received from Airtel.

Tingo Mobile’s Phone Suppliers: Since 2020, Tingo Mobile has purchased mobile phones from two suppliers: UGC Technologies Limited, with which it has had a contractual relationship since December 2020, and Bullitt Mobile, with which it has had a distribution agreement since February 2022.
Hindenburg contacted a company called UGC Mobile Technologies in the U.S., not Tingo Mobile’s supplier, UGC Technologies Limited, which has offices in Africa and China. Tingo Mobile has purchased almost all its mobile phones from UGC Technologies Limited to date, with only a small purchase of 1,000 units of Caterpillar branded phones from Bullitt Mobile in 2022.

Tingo Mobile’s Taxes: On April 7, 2023, Tingo Mobile paid in full to the Nigeria Federal Inland Revenue Service (“FIRS”) its corporate income tax (“CIT”) and Tertiary Education Tax (“EDT”) for the fiscal year 2022.

Tingo Mobile Ghana: The Company’s recently established operations in Ghana are currently conducted exclusively through its trade agreement with the Ashanti Investment Trust. The Company leases mobile telephones to individuals introduced through the Ashanti Investment Trust and such customers also have access to Nwassa. The sim cards, airtime and data are sold to customers through a third-party vendor, as a result of which Tingo Mobile is not required to have a license with the National Communications Authority in Ghana. Tingo Mobile does not currently deal with or accept any new customers other than through its relationship with the Ashanti Investment Trust, it is however preparing to further expand the company’s business in Ghana and is currently recruiting a workforce and building a website to assist in facilitating this.

TingoPay: Tingo Mobile entered into a partnership with Visa on September 27, 2021, subsequent to which it has hosted several joint events with Visa, and it also launched a beta version of TingoPay with Visa on February 14, 2023. Prior to contracting with Visa, Tingo Mobile entered into a strategic partnership agreement with Stanbic Bank, dated November 17, 2020, and work was undertaken by the parties to develop an integrated e-wallet solution. After a disagreement over the Tingo Mobile press release in April 2021, the partnership with Stanbic Bank ceased and Tingo Mobile instead entered into the partnership and e-wallet integration with Visa.

Tingo Mobile’s NWASSA Platform: The Nwassa USSD platform is pre-loaded on the Tingo Mobile phones that are leased to the cooperatives and their farmers. Other individuals that have their own mobile phone can also register on the Nwassa USSD platform and conduct transactions on the platform. The Nwassa platform can be used by farmers to purchase items such as farming inputs, insurance, micro-loans, or additional airtime. The transactions made through Nwassa are processed by a third-party payment processing company owned by an American multi-national fintech company, which collects a commission payment on behalf of Tingo Mobile on each transaction and remits the commissions to its bank account. Tingo Mobile has confirmed its Q1 2023 reported revenue from the NWASSA platform.

Tingo DMCC: Tingo DMCC is the Company’s new agricultural export business. As of June 30, 2023, Tingo DMCC had conducted three export sales transactions totaling $348 million with customers located in neighboring countries within Africa. Tingo DMCC currently conducts its business through its direct contacts and sales leads. It is, however, in the process of developing a separate website for use in the future.

Financial Statement Errors: The “errors” identified by Hindenburg in Tingo Group’s financial statements and MD&A in its year-end 2022 Form 10-K and Q1 2023 Form 10-Q were typographical errors that were obvious to the reader from the remainder of the numbers and other information.
All the information required to be disclosed relating to Certain Relationships and Related Transactions (including the acquisition of Tingo Mobile on November 30, 2022), and Director Independence, was included in the Form 10-K.

While the Company’s cash-flow statement inadvertently labeled an increase in trade receivables as a decrease, the numbers themselves were correct. The discrepancies Hindenburg identified between the change in receivables reported on the balance sheet and change in receivables reported in the cash flow statement reflect Hindenburg’s misunderstanding of the numbers and the relevant U.S. GAAP accounting standards, including in relation to how the business combinations that closed during the relevant accounting periods impacted the numbers. In both cases, the “difference” resulted from non-cash adjustments related mainly to the Company’s acquisition of Tingo Mobile in Q4 2022 and its acquisition of Tingo Foods in Q1 2023, all of which were correct.

Independent Auditors: The engagement with Brightman Almagor Zohar & Co., a firm in the Deloitte Global Network, was after consideration of the relevant factors regarding the location of auditors. Such factors included that the Company does not have any operations in the U.S., and the consolidation process and preparation for the group’s financial statement and SEC filings is performed by the Company’s finance function in Israel.

Bank Balances: Bank statements were obtained directly from the banks used by Tingo Mobile and Tingo Foods, and interviews with the banks were conducted over video conference calls. The bank balances of each company were confirmed at several dates, including at the Quarter End dates of March 31, 2023, June 30, 2023, and as late as August 3, 2023, which reconciled and agreed to each company’s accounting records and financial statements.
Tingo Mobile earns interest only on funds held in a fixed deposit account. Due to its cash needs from time to time, Tingo Mobile is unable to encumber a large portion of its funds in a fixed-deposit account that would earn interest.

Having concluded the investigation into the allegations made by Hindenburg against the Company and its businesses, which was deemed to be the highest priority, the Company and its outside counsel will now proceed to investigate Hindenburg’s allegations against the founder of Tingo Mobile and Tingo Foods, Dozy Mmobuosi.

About Tingo Group

Tingo Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: TIO) is a global Fintech and Agri-Fintech group of companies with operations in Africa, Southeast Asia and the Middle East. Tingo Group’s wholly owned subsidiary, Tingo Mobile, is a leading Agri-Fintech company operating in Africa, with a comprehensive portfolio of innovative products, including a ‘device as a service’ smartphone and a value-added service platform. As part of its globalization strategy, Tingo Mobile has recently begun to expand internationally and entered into trade partnerships that are contracted to increase the number of subscribed farmers from 9.3 million in 2022 to more than 32 million, providing them with access to services including, among others, the Nwassa ‘seed-to-sale’ marketplace platform, insurance, micro-finance, and mobile phone and data top-up. Tingo Group’s other Tingo business verticals include: TingoPay, a SuperApp in partnership with Visa, that is currently in beta version, offering a wide range of B2C and B2B services including payment services, an e-wallet, foreign exchange and merchant services; Tingo Foods, a food processing business that processes raw foods into finished products such as rice, groundnut oil, nut products, wheat, millet and maize; and Tingo DMCC, a commodity trading platform and agricultural commodities export business based out of the Dubai Multi Commodities Center. In addition to its Tingo business verticals, Tingo Group also holds and operates an insurance brokerage platform business in China; and Magpie Securities, a regulated finance services Fintech business operating out of Hong Kong and Singapore. For more information visit tingogroup.com

Related Topics:Hinderberg NASDAQ Tingo Group

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Court Sends Woman to Prison for Abusing Tinubu’s Son, IGP on Social Media

Published

13 hours ago

December 21, 2024

Eric

Olamide Thomas, who reportedly threatened Seyi Tinubu on social media, was on Friday, arraigned before a Federal High Court in Abuja.

Olamide was arraigned by the office of the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, before Justice Emeka Nwite on a three-count charge.

Olamide was alleged to have, sometime in 2024, knowingly and intentionally transmitted communication in the form of video recording through a computer system or network on her social media platforms wherein she made remarks in Yoruba language.

In the video, she was alleged to have stated: “Mr. Seyi Tinubu would die this year, and misfortune and calamity had befallen the Tinubu family, with intent to bully, threaten, harass the person of Mr Seyi Tinubu.”

The communication was said to have placed Seyi in fear of death, violence or bodily harm.

The offence is contrary to and punishable under Section 24 (2) (a) of Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc.) (Amendment) Act, 2024.

In count two, the defendant was alleged to have intentionally transmitted communication in the form of video recording wherein she made remarks in Yoruba Language to bully, threaten, and harass the person of Egbetokun.

The communication was said to have placed Egbetokun in fear of death, violence or bodily harm.

The offence is contrary to and punishable under Section 24 (2) (a) of Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc.) (Amendment) Act, 2024.

She, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.

Olamide was arrested on allegations bordering on harassing and threatening Seyi Tinubu, Egbetokun, and the Police Public Relations Officer, Muyiwa Adejobi, in a viral social media post.

In the charge marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/636/2024 dated and filed on December 18 by the police team of lawyers led by A.A. Egwu, Olamide was sued as sole defendant.

Upon resumed hearing, Victor Okoye, who appeared for the police, informed the court that the matter was slated for arraignment and that he was ready to proceed.

After the counts were read to the defendant, she pleaded not guilty to the charge.

The defence lawyer, T J. Aondo (SAN), sought to move an oral application on his client’s behalf but the request was turned down.

Justice Nwite directed Aondo to file a formal bail application and adjourned the matter until December 30 for the commencement of trial.

The judge, however, assured the defence counsel that as soon as a bail application is filed in form of a motion on notice, the court would not hesitate to hear it.

Justice Nwite, thereafter, ordered Olamide to be remanded in Suleja Correctional Centre pending the hearing of her bail application.

Featured

Buhari Denies Ownership of Abuja Land Revoked by Wike

Published

2 days ago

December 20, 2024

Eric

Former President Muhammadu Buhari, on Thursday, denied ownership of a piece of land purportedly allocated to him by the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCDA) in Abuja.

Media reports indicate that Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has revoked the ownership of 762 plots of land in the Maitama 1 District of Abuja, citing non-payment of statutory fees.

According to the trending reports, high-profile figures, including former President Muhammadu Buhari and former Chief Justice Walter Onnoghen, are among those affected.

The FCTA had also issued a two-week ultimatum to 614 other individuals and organisations, demanding they settle outstanding Rights of Occupancy (R-of-O) fees or risk losing their plots.
However, debunking the reports, the former President stated he is “not the owner of the said plot of land which is allocated in the name of a ‘Muhammadu Buhari Foundation.’”

In a statement issued by his media aide, Garba Shehu, in Abuja, the former President explained that he turned down the offer by the administration when it was presented to him.

The media aide further clarified: “When he and his cabinet members were invited to fill the forms and obtain land during his tenure in office, he returned the form without filling it, saying that he already had a plot of land in the FCT and that those who did not have should be given. He, therefore, turned down the offer.

“All those jumping up and down in the digital space talking about the rightfulness or the lack of it on the reported seizure of Buhari’s land in Abuja to get their facts right and stop dragging down the name of the former president.

“As with anything Buhari—and there is no surprise in this at all—there is a lot of buzz in the media on the reported seizure of a piece of land by the authorities of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, FCTA, allegedly belonging to the former President Muhammadu Buhari.

“Former President Buhari is personally not the owner of the said plot of land, which is allocated in the name of a ‘Muhammadu Buhari Foundation.

“The Foundation was itself floated by some utilitarian individuals around him who, it must be said, went about it in a lawful manner with the support of a number of well-meaning persons.

“But they ran into a roadblock in the land department of the FCDA, which handed them an outrageous bill for the issuance of the certificate of occupancy, very high in cost that did not at all compare with the bills given to similar organisations.

“It may have been that this was not erroneous, but a deliberate mistake, making the revocation of the land no surprise to anyone.

“As a person, the former President has a plot of land to his name in Abuja,” he added

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Dangote Refinery, a Wonder of Modern Technology – Japan Ambassador, Business Community

Published

6 days ago

December 16, 2024

Eric

The Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals complex has been hailed as an astonishing masterpiece, showcasing Nigeria’s technological advancements on the global stage.

This accolade was shared by a delegation from the Japanese Business Community in Nigeria, led by Japan’s Ambassador-designate to Nigeria, Suzuki Hideo. The Dangote Group also reiterated that its petroleum products are in demand worldwide, as it expands its polypropylene section to reduce Nigeria’s reliance on imported polypropylene, a crucial material used in packaging, textiles, and the automotive manufacturing industries.

The Japanese delegation, which toured the impressive facilities housing both the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals as well as Dangote Fertilisers, commended the state-of-the-art technology on display, noting that it reinforces Nigeria’s role as the gateway to Africa.

Managing Director of the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO), Takashi Oku, remarked that while Nigeria remains the gateway to Africa, the Dangote Refinery stands as a remarkable project that showcases the country’s technological progress. He added that the facility, as the world’s largest single-train refinery, is a point of immense pride for Nigeria. JETRO is Japan’s governmental organisation for trade and investment.

“We had heard about the excellence of the Dangote Refinery through the media but seeing it in person has left us truly amazed by its vastness and grandeur. It demonstrates that Nigeria’s population is not only growing but also advancing in technology. We are keen to collaborate with Nigerian companies, especially Dangote Refinery,” he said.

Emphasising that the refinery has bolstered Nigeria’s leading position in Africa, he further noted that the facility serves as an ideal introduction to the country for the global community.

Managing Director of Itochu Nigeria Limited, Masahiro Tsuno, also praised the sheer size and automation of the Dangote Refinery, calling it a miracle and one of the wonders of the world.

“I’ve seen many standalone refineries across the globe, including in Vietnam and the Middle East. However, this size of a refinery built by one single investor is probably a miracle in the world. And I’m just actually witnessing a miracle, to be honest, today,” he said. Tsuno indicated that his company would seek collaboration with the refinery across various sectors, including polypropylene and other petroleum products.

Commending the ambassador-designate and his team, which described the Dangote Petroleum Refinery as a wonder of modern technology, Vice President of Oil and Gas, Dangote Industries Limited, Devakumar Edwin, explained that the facility is the vision of a Nigerian investor- Aliko Dangote, designed and built by Nigerians, and intended to serve the global market.

He said that it is a point of pride that a Nigerian company not only designed but also built the world’s largest single-train refinery complex. Dangote Industries Limited, a Nigerian company, acted as the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) contractor for the refinery. In the process, cutting-edge technologies from around the world were incorporated to ensure that the facility meets the highest standards. Edwin assured the ambassador-designate and the delegation that the company is open to collaboration, always striving to maintain the best possible standards.

“Even now, we have a lot of Japanese equipment inside both the refinery and the fertiliser plant. There are significant opportunities for collaboration, as we always seek the latest technology in any business we engage in. For instance, our cement plant laboratory is managed by robots, and we always embrace advanced technology. With Japan’s focus on technological innovation, there is ample scope for cooperation and for supplying various types of technology,” he said.

Edwin also stated that the Dangote Petrochemical project will significantly boost investment in downstream industries, creating substantial value, generating employment, increasing tax revenues, reducing foreign exchange outflows, and contributing to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

He confirmed that products from the refinery meet international standards and are already being exported globally.

“In recent weeks, we’ve exported petrol to Cameroon, Ghana, Angola, and South Africa among others. Diesel has gone all over the world, and jet fuel is being heavily exported to European markets. Our products are already making their mark internationally,” he said.

He further added that by leveraging Africa’s vast crude oil resources to produce refined products locally, the Dangote Group aims to create a virtuous cycle of industrial development, job creation, and economic prosperity.