| Dozy Mmobuosi | |
| Birth Place: | Lagos, Nigeria |
Dozy Mmobuosi, is a Nigerian businessman and tech entrepreneur. An advocate for technological advancement in Africa,[1] he is the founder and former CEO of Tingo Inc.[2] [3]
In 2023, the US Securities and Exchange Commission filed charges against him saying he had been attempting to defraud investors by inflating Tingo companies’ financial performance figures.[4] [5] On 2 January 2024, Mmobuosi was charged in the US with securities fraud, making false filings with the SEC, and conspiracy charges.[6]
Mmobuosi was born in Lagos, Nigeria. He claims he received a Bachelor of Science degree in political science from Ambrose Alli University in Ekpoma, Edo State. He also claims he received his Master of Science degree in economics from the same university.[7] He also claims he received a doctorate degree in rural advancement from University of Putra, Malaysia in 2007,[8] although Hindenburg Research, a short-selling activist group, was not able to verify this in their June 2023 report.[9] In March 2022, Mmobuosi completed the Advanced Management and Leadership Programme at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford.[10] [11]
In 2001, Mmobuosi founded Tingo Mobile to provide mobile technology and Fintech solutions to rural communities in Nigeria.[12] In 2015, Mmobuosi founded Tingo Inc., a publicly traded company on the OTC Markets Group. In January 2019, Mmobuosi launched Nwassa, a digital Agri-Marketplace that is Africa’s first agricultural technology and digital platform.[13] [14] [15]
In December 2022, Mmobuosi unveiled the Dozy Mmobuosi Leadership Centre (DMLC), housed in Oxford, United Kingdom, with the aim of developing African leaders skills to help them transform their private and public sector services.[16] [17] In February 2023, it was reported that Mmobuosi was close to completing a £90 million takeover of English football club Sheffield United,[18] [19] reportedly paying a near-£10 million non-refundable deposit for the financially troubled club,[20] but Mmobuosi later discontinued his bid and was planning to set up a new football club in Lagos called Club 1472.[21] Amid his attempted Sheffield United takeover, it was reported that Mmobuosi had been sued in the US and UK over unpaid debts; in a $300,000 Connecticut lawsuit, Mmobuosi was sued by a Tingo Mobile executives for failing to pay wages for at least half a year's work; in February 2022, a UK court ordered Tingo International Holdings Inc. to pay a UK property firm £87,000 ($105,000) in unpaid rent for a home he used as his private residence in Radlett near London.[22]
In June 2023, NASDAQ-listed shares in Tingo Group plunged in value after a report from short seller Hindenburg Research said the company was an "exceptionally obvious scam".[23] The company denied the Hindenburg report claims, which it said contained "errors of fact" and "misleading and libellous content",[24] and appointed lawyers White & Case to review the report's claims.[25] In November 2023, dealing in Tingo and Agri-Fintech Holdings shares was suspended by the SEC over concerns about the accuracy of information about the companies.[26] Almost three months later, Tingo Group declared itself innocent of Hindenburg's allegations based on an investigation by its own outside counsel "and further investigative work of its own".[27] Hindenburg described Tingo's claims as "brazen and obvious fabrications".[28] On 18 September 2023, Tingo Group appointed Mmobuosi and Kenneth Denos interim Co-CEOs.[29]
On 13 November 2023, the US Securities and Exchange Commission halted trading in Tingo Group shares[30] and those of related entity Agri-Fintech Securities[31] after finding inaccuracies in their disclosures.[26] The SEC asserted there were "questions and concerns regarding the adequacy and accuracy of publicly available information in the marketplace ... since at least May 10, 2022, about the financial statements and business operations of Tingo Group and its wholly-owned subsidiaries, including Tingo Mobile Ltd,"[31] and "since at least February 9, 2023, about the financial statements and business operations of its wholly-owned subsidiary, Tingo Foods PLC."[30] While the SEC suspension of shares expired in late November, Nasdaq chose to keep trading of Tingo securities halted pending a review of provided information.[32] Tingo shares traded as high as $5.45 in May, before the Hindenburg report, then slumped to $0.69 prior to suspension.[33]
In December 2023, the SEC announced three charges against Mmobuosi and three US-based entities: Tingo Group Inc, Agri-Fintech Holdings Inc and Tingo International Holdings Inc, alleging fraudulent financial claims to defraud investors. As an example, the SEC said Tingo Group’s fiscal year 2022 Form 10-K reported a balance of $461.7m in various bank accounts while allegedly only having a combined balance of less than $50 at the end of the year. However, the alleged fraud's roots "date back years", beginning in at least 2019 with Mmobuosi said by the SEC to have "created fake financial statements and forged supporting material to falsely portray Tingo Mobile as a thriving and profitable enterprise with hundreds of millions of annual revenue, profit and available cash.... In reality, throughout 2019, the company had no meaningful operations or customers and about $15 in its bank account."[34] The SEC's 72-page complaint also outlines allegedly fraudulent transactions involving Tingo Mobile in December 2022 and Tingo Foods in February 2023.[34] Auditor Deloitte had given the firm a clean, unqualified audit for its 2022 accounts, leading Hindenburg to question if the firm had "missed or rushed through procedures".[35] The SEC alleged Mmobuosi siphoned hundreds of millions of investors' money for his personal benefit.[36]
On 20 December 2023, Tingo Group said Mmobuosi was temporarily stepping down as interim co-CEO of the fintech firm following the SEC charges.[37]
On 2 January 2024, Mmobuosi was charged in the US with securities fraud, making false filings with the SEC, and conspiracy charges;[6] [38] the three charges carry a maximum sentence of 45 years.[39] In a statement, Mmobuosi said the allegations were unfounded and he was "preparing to contest them to the full extent of his capacity".[40] [41] By March 2024, Mmobuosi, living in the UK, had given numerous interviews to journalists in Nigeria denying the fraud allegations. Meanwhile, Sheffield United's owner Prince Abdullah was seeking legal advice on whether he might have to give Mmobuosi's deposit to US authorities as the proceeds of crime.[20]