Nigeria: UK-Based Firm Acquires Majority Stake in 9Mobile, Appoints New CEO

9Mobile has announced a major leadership change following the acquisition of a majority stake by a UK-based firm. The new board of directors has been appointed to steer the company through its transition and recovery phase.

Obafemi Banigbe has been appointed as the Managing Director and CEO, while Thomas Etuh has been named Chairman of the Board. Etuh, with over 36 years of experience in telecommunications, agriculture, and banking, is the founder of the Tak Group of Companies and has previously served on the boards of Unity Bank Plc and Notore Chemicals Industries Plc.

The newly formed board also includes:

• Nahim Abe Ibraheem, who brings over 30 years of expertise in finance, oil trade, and procurement.
• Femi Edun, a financial services expert with 35 years of experience from Deloitte and PricewaterhouseCoopers.
• Senator Daisy Ehanire Danjuma, Executive Chairman of SAPETRO, known for her extensive leadership roles in various foundations and companies.
• Michael Ikpoki, former CEO of MTN Ghana and MTN Nigeria, and current leader of Africa Context Advisory Partners.
• Ibrahim Puri, a finance professional with over 30 years of experience.
• Gloria Danjuma, with over 20 years of leadership across multiple industries.
• Emmanuel Etuh, Executive Director at Lighthouse Capital, overseeing corporate services.

The new leadership team aims to guide 9Mobile through its recovery and strengthen its market position.

This leadership change follows recent speculation about MTN Nigeria’s interest in acquiring 9Mobile’s spectrum. Reports nine months ago suggested that MTN could potentially acquire 9Mobile, raising concerns about a possible monopoly in the telecommunications sector.

The spectrum deal was seen as a potential lifeline for 9Mobile, which has faced challenges due to the departure of key technical partners and investors. The National Association of Telecoms Subscribers (NATCOMS) had urged the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to block any such acquisition to avoid creating an oligopoly.

In the first quarter of 2024, 9Mobile reported a loss of 6,443 subscribers, representing 72% of the total 9,000 porting activities recorded by the NCC. During the same period, MTN lost 473 customers, Airtel experienced a loss of 950, and Globacom had 1,143 outgoing portings.