MultiChoice Defrauded N7.9bn In A Botched Foreign Currency Exchange Contract

By Akinwale Kasali

MultiChoice Nigeria Limited, owners of DSTV and GOTV is enmeshed in crisis as the Company have been defrauded by Arshay Mervyn, an alleged representative of JNFX, a Currency Exchange, of a whopping sum of N7.9 Billion.

It was gathered that due to forex scarcity, MultiChoice Nigeria Ltd had contacted a Currency Broker, in person of one Akintunde Giwa and his Company to arrange the exchange of Naira to Dollar for its operations in Nigeria.

Giwa was said to have acted on the instruction of Multichoice and contacted Mervyn, who was said to be a representative of JNFX.

MultiChoice had paid the N7.9 Billion into the account of Giwa’s company, and Giwa paid the said sum in Naira into JNFX Account given to him by Mervyn in return for Dollars into an account held by Standard Chartered Bank In London, United Kingdom in the name of MultiChoice amounting to the sum of $16,230,369 (Sixteen Million, Two Hundred and Thirty Thousand, Three Hundred and Thirty Nine Dollars).

After several days, no Dollar payment was made by Mervyn or JNFX into MultiChoice Account, prompting Giwa and MultiChoice to raise alarm.

When Giwa and MultiChoice contacted JNFX, JNFX claimed that Mervyn was not its representative, stressing that though top Executives of JNFX received Mails and Copies of the Transaction, but they are aware of engaging Mervyn as one of its representative.

Following this development, Mervyn was declared wanted by anti-graft agency, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, as Mervyn’s whereabouts remains unknown to Giwa and MultiChoice.

A case has however been filed at the Court as regards this present issue.

EFCC has declared Mervyn wanted in an alleged case of Obtaining Money under False Pretence and Fraudulent Conversion of Funds.