Singapore – Olam Group, a Singapore-based commodities trader, has refuted allegations made in Nigerian media reports last week, which suggested that its Nigerian units were involved in a multi-billion dollar foreign exchange fraud.
The Daily Nigerian and Prime Business Africa had reported that Nigeria's secret police were conducting an investigation into Olam's Nigerian units, Olam Nigeria and Olam International, as well as their affiliated firms, in connection with a foreign exchange fraud exceeding $50 billion.
In response, Olam issued a statement denying the allegations and expressed its commitment to address the issue. The company has directed its audit committee to review the matter.
The reports also claimed that some of the companies under scrutiny had “fictitious Nigerians as directors” and that authorities had identified a network of shell companies connected to Olam, among others.
Following the news, Olam Group's shares experienced a 7.8% decline to S$1.180 and touched a record low of S$1.150 earlier in the session.
Olam emphasized that its unit, Olam Nigeria, has been cooperating with requests for information from Nigerian authorities and will continue to do so.
Reporting by Echha Jain in Bengaluru. Editing by Mariam Aminu.
