The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has instructed all regulated participants in Nigeria’s capital market to freeze, without prior notice, any funds or assets connected to a Nigerian known as Mukhtar Adamu Muhammad and 3 Nigerian bureau de change firms placed under United States sanctions for allegedly facilitating transactions linked to ISIS and ISIS-West Africa.
The affected firms are Generation Currency Bureau De Change Limited, Manhattan Bureau De Change Limited and Nine to Nine Exchange Bureau De Change Limited. Nigerian Capital market Operators are required to report the frozen assets, suspicious or attempted transactions and any matching names to the Nigeria Sanctions Committee and the NFIU. They must also discontinue business with the designated parties and continue monitoring related transactions. SEC further emphasizes that failure to comply could lead to regulatory penalties, including fines, suspension of operations or license cancellation.
