Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said that the MBA Forex Trading and Capital Investment company received in its account, a total of N171,128,219,041 made by 125,397 investors.
The MBA forex scheme which promises to give a 15% return on investments to depositors however, crumbled in November, leaving its investors hanging with promises of return of deposited capital.
In a legal suit with Number FHC/PH/MIsC/35/2021, filed before the Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt on the 10th of February, 2021, the CBN prayed the court to stop all debit transactions from MBA accounts.
This development prompted the court to issue an order on the 11th of February that any MBA forex accounts maintained in any bank in the country be frozen to enable the CBN to investigate the matter.
It was gathered that about 39 Naira bank accounts were maintained in Access Bank, EcoBank, FCMB, GTB, Suntrust, Stanbic IBTC, Sterling Bank, UBA, Union Bank, Unity Bank and Zenith Bank. Others are 8 dollar accounts domiciled in FCMB, Ecobank, Stanbic IBTC, UBA and Sterling Bank.
Several allegations were laid against the MBA company.
It was alleged that Maxwell Odum, MBA founder, allegedly mismanaged investors’ funds by paying billions of naira to the account of Pastor Chris Oyakhilome of Christ Embassy.
According to several sources, this has helped him to receive General Overseer’s Presidential handshake.
According to the court documents filed by the Apex bank, the company has a total of 14 branches which include Aba with 3,159 investors and deposits of N3,721, 930,689; Abuja with 10, 992 investors and deposits of N20, 508, 696,314; Allen Lagos with 10,164 investors and deposits of N13, 068, 196, 850; Asaba with 3,406 investors and deposits of N4,177,475,745; Benin with 6,170 investors and deposits of N7,016,573,157, Calabar with N2,839 investors and deposits of N3,377,292,827 and Eliozu Port Harcourt branch with 30, 138 investors and deposits of N41, 956,413,079.
Others are Enugu with 2,560 investors and deposits of N6, 972, 471, 039; Lekki with8,826 and deposits of N14, 224,187,177; Owerri 1 with 2, 545 and deposits of N2, 908,274,471; Owerri 2 with 5,276 investors and deposits of N6,752,547,834; Uyo with 2,948 investors and deposits of N4,274,056,414; Warri with 7, 213 investors and deposits of N9,766,552,367 and Port Harcourt waterlines branch with 29,151 investors and deposits of N32,403,449,045.
According to the CBN, investors from Port Harcourt made up 43.45 per cent of the total investors.
The MBA has since reacted to the development, informing its investors that it will be constrained to refrain from any further actions or statements that may affect or influence the ongoing investigation as the matter is now before the court.
The MBA forex company, in a message to its clients, said, “We have gathered that the actions of the Central Bank of Nigeria are well within the confines of their statutory obligations and was instigated by some investors against our earlier advise.
“These disruptions have interfered with our plans and incapacitated the steps we have initiated towards the realization of the repayment of capital investments. We may not be able to continue to comment on any matter relating to our operations pending the determination of the investigation initiate by the Central Bank of Nigeria”.
