Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has warned that unregistered schemes pose serious risks for investors.

This is coming after the commission announced that it has shut down more than 400 fraudulent investment schemes across Nigeria, in intensified regulatory crackdown on illegal investment activities and a stronger push to protect investors.

SEC also said that several suspects linked to these schemes are currently under prosecution.

The disclosure was made by Bola Ajomale, executive commissioner for Operations, SEC, during the financial literacy forum “The Money Fair,” organized by Nairametrics in Lagos.

Ajomale, who represented Dr. Emomotimi Agama, director-general, SEC, emphasized the regulator’s commitment to safeguarding market confidence amid a surge in unregulated investment platforms.

“Over the last three years, we have investigated and shut down at least 400 of these so-called schemes,” Ajomale said.

“We saw a tremendous increase in them last year, and a number of those involved have been arrested and prosecuted.”

If the investment product or the operator is not registered with the SEC, they have no business asking you to put your money there.”

The SEC has intensified its enforcement measures alongside public awareness campaigns to curb the proliferation of illegal investment platforms.

Initiatives such as the “See It, Snap It” campaign and the “SEC Scam Alert” platform have been introduced to enable Nigerians to report suspicious schemes quickly, allowing regulators to act before these operations expand.

Ajomale noted that the regulator has adopted a multi-pronged strategy combining investigations, arrests, and investor education to enhance market integrity.

“We are not just shutting down illegal schemes; we are also empowering investors with the knowledge to identify and avoid fraudulent operators,” he said.

The crackdown comes as unregulated investment products continue to pose significant risks to Nigerian investors, particularly amid rising interest in digital and alternative investment platforms.

NigComSat-1R, a Nigerian geostationary communications satellite will outlive its usefulness this year, meaning that the satellite will expire anytime now.

NigComSat-1R was launched by China Great Wall Industry Corporation (CGWIC) for Nigeria on December 19, 2011, as a replacement for the failed NigComSat-1.

NigComSat-1 which was put in the orbit in May 2007, was de-orbited in November 2008 following the development of power fault.

It was replaced with NigComSat-1R by the same company and has a lifespan of 15 years.

Positioned at 42.5°E, it provides C, Ku, Ka, and L-band services across Africa, Europe, and parts of Asia for broadcasting and internet.

Should the satellite fail, support for television broadcasting, internet connectivity, and secure communications for government and private sectors, may be affected.

The satellite is currently been controlled from China since 2019 following technical issues with the Abuja control station.

NigComSat-1R is currently the only active communications satellite managed by NIGCOMSAT Limited, though it operates alongside other Nigerian observation satellites.

MTN Group delivered impressive financial and operational achievements for 2025, boosted by strong performances in MTN Nigeria and MTN Ghana, as well as solid earnings from MTN South Africa.

The three core markets of Africa’s largest mobile provider enhanced profitability, free cash flow, and shareholder dividends by 45%.

IT Web Africa reported that Ralph Mupita, group CEO and president, MTN, highlighted that the telecoms giant’s robust commercial momentum across key markets capped the final year of its Ambition 2025 strategy, while laying the foundation for a new long-term growth phase under Ambition 2030.

“The Group’s overall performance in 2025 was excellent. In the final year of our Ambition 2025 strategy, we were proud to have exceeded the 300 million customers milestone,” he said.

MTN revealed that it now serves more than 307 million voice subscribers, 172 million data users, and 70 million Mobile Money customers across 16 African markets, reflecting the continent’s growing demand for digital connectivity and financial services.

The operator credited its results to disciplined commercial execution and sustained investment in network infrastructure, with R38 billion spent during the year to expand capacity, improve coverage and enhance service quality.

The group reported that data traffic surged 27%, while average monthly data consumption per user climbed to 12.5GB, up from 10.8GB a year earlier, reflecting Africa’s fast-growing appetite for digital services.

Financially, the performance was driven by MTN’s largest markets.

In constant currency terms, MTN Nigeria grew service revenue by 54.9%, while MTN Ghana increased service revenue by 35.9%.

Meanwhile, MTN South Africa recorded 2% growth, demonstrating operational resilience in one of the continent’s most mature and competitive telecom markets.

MTN Group service revenue rose nearly a quarter to R218 billion, while earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation climbed to R98.5 billion, supported by R3.6 billion in expense efficiencies.

Mupita stressed that the strong results translated into robust free cash flow and improved return generation, allowing the board to declare a dividend of 500 cents per share, up from 345 cents the previous year.

“This comfortably exceeds the minimum dividend of 370 cents we had previously guided,” he said.

The group also announced a R6 billion share buyback programme as part of an enhanced shareholder remuneration framework aimed at delivering stronger long-term returns.

Alongside its results, MTN unveiled Ambition 2030, a strategy centred on three platforms, connectivity, fintech and digital infrastructure, as it seeks to capture the next wave of growth driven by data adoption and financial inclusion across Africa.

“We are hugely excited about Africa’s potential. We are well positioned to leverage our scale, footprint and brand leadership to capture the significant structural growth opportunities identified,” said Mupita.

Source: IT Web Africa