(Reuters) – A Nigerian judge adjourned until October 29 a case to resolve a $2 billion tax dispute between South African telecoms company MTN Group and Nigeria’s attorney general.
The attorney general has demanded MTN pay the $2 billion in September. The company has said the tax demand is without merit and the attorney general has exceeded his powers in making the request. Lawyers for the government requested the adjournment.
Nigeria is MTN’s biggest market, with 58 million users in 2018 and accounting for a third of the South African firm’s core profit. But the Nigerian business has faced challenges, ranging from the tax demand to a fine over unregistered SIM cards.
MTN Nigeria, the company’s local unit, listed in Lagos in May in a 2 trillion naira ($6.5 billion) flotation and became the second-largest stock on the bourse by market value.
The listing followed MTN Group’s agreement with Nigerian regulators to settle most of its long-running disputes.
