The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has secured a landmark enforcement action against a Nigerian accountant and his firm for aiding one of the largest financial frauds involving an African tech company in U.S. markets. On August 11, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York entered final consent judgments against Olayinka Temitope Oyebola and his Lagos-based, PCAOB-registered firm, Olayinka Oyebola & Co. (Chartered Accountants), imposing heavy fines and professional bans.
The penalties stem from their role in assisting Dozy Mmobuosi, founder of the now-defunct agri-fintech company Tingo Group, in a multi-year scheme to fabricate the company’s financial performance and mislead global investors.
The Fraud and the Auditors’ Role
According to the SEC’s complaint, filed in September 2024, Oyebola and his firm became aware that Mmobuosi and his U.S.-based Tingo entities had created multiple fraudulent audit reports bearing Oyebola’s signature. These fake audits were submitted in SEC filings as though they were genuine, deceiving regulators, investors, and subsequent auditors.
Rather than reporting the misconduct, Oyebola allegedly made “material misstatements” to a successor auditor and took steps to conceal the fraud, allowing the fabricated reports to be relied upon by unsuspecting stakeholders. This assistance, the SEC argued, was instrumental in enabling Mmobuosi to continue the scheme, which inflated key financial metrics to attract investment.
Penalties and Injunctions
Without admitting or denying the allegations, Oyebola and his firm agreed to a settlement that includes:
- Civil Fines: $100,000 each for Oyebola and the firm.
- Permanent Injunctions: Prohibiting them from violating key antifraud provisions under the Securities Act of 1933, the Exchange Act of 1934, and related SEC rules.
- Professional Suspension: Both are suspended from appearing or practicing before the SEC as accountants, with the right to reapply after six years.
This suspension effectively bars them from auditing or providing accounting services to any U.S.-listed company or entity filing with the SEC.
Background on the Corporate Collapse
Tingo Group, once marketed as a transformative agri-fintech enterprise in Africa and traded on the Nasdaq, imploded after U.S. regulators accused Mmobuosi of inventing key operational and financial data. By late 2023, the SEC described the operation as a “massive fraud,” claiming nearly every public statement about the company’s business was untrue.
Earlier in 2025, Mmobuosi and several affiliated entities were ordered to surrender more than $250 million in ill-gotten gains and were permanently excluded from the American securities industry. The company itself has shut down.
Global Implications
The action against Oyebola is notable because it extends the SEC’s enforcement reach beyond U.S. borders, sending a message that foreign-based professionals tied to misconduct affecting American markets will not escape accountability.
For Africa’s emerging technology and finance sectors, the episode is a cautionary example. Securing capital from abroad brings not only opportunity but also exposure to stringent oversight and potential legal consequences if governance standards are compromised.
The SEC has indicated its investigation into related matters remains active, suggesting additional legal consequences could still be on the horizon.
