A Nigerian auditor and his accounting firm have been fined a total of $200,000 and effectively barred from auditing US public companies for their role in the massive fraud scheme involving agri-fintech company Tingo Group.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that Olayinka Temitope Oyebola and his Lagos-based firm, Olayinka Oyebola & Co. (Chartered Accountants), agreed to the penalties to settle charges that they aided and abetted the multi-year fraud orchestrated by Tingo’s founder, Dozy Mmobuosi.

The Charges: Fake Audits and Complicity

According to a final judgment entered in a New York federal court on August 11, 2025, Oyebola and his firm played a crucial role in deceiving investors. The SEC’s complaint, filed last year, alleged that the auditors discovered that Tingo executives had faked audit reports using Oyebola’s signature for filings with the commission.

Instead of alerting regulators, Oyebola allegedly took steps to help Mmobuosi and Tingo conceal the fraud. The SEC stated that Oyebola made “material misstatements” to one of the Tingo entities’ subsequent auditors, which resulted in investors, regulators, and the new auditor relying on the fake reports.

This assistance, the SEC argued, was critical in allowing Mmobuosi to perpetuate the scheme, which involved fabricating the financial performance of his companies to defraud investors worldwide.

The Penalty: Fines and a Ban

Without admitting or denying the SEC’s allegations, Oyebola and his firm consented to a judgment that includes:

• Civil Penalties: A fine of $100,000 for Oyebola and a separate $100,000 for his firm.
• Permanent Injunctions: They are permanently banned from violating key antifraud provisions of the U.S. federal securities laws.
• Professional Suspension: Both Oyebola and his firm are suspended from appearing or practicing before the SEC as accountants. They have the right to apply for reinstatement after six years.

This suspension effectively bars them from auditing or providing accounting services to any company that is publicly traded in the United States or submits filings to the SEC.

Context: The Tingo Group Collapse

The action against the auditors is a significant development in the fallout from the Tingo Group scandal. Once a high-flying, Nasdaq-listed company claiming to be revolutionizing African agriculture, Tingo Group was exposed as a “massive fraud” by the SEC in late 2023.

Its founder, Dozy Mmobuosi, was charged with fabricating “nearly every aspect” of the business, including its financials and operations. In a separate judgment earlier this year, Mmobuosi and his entities were ordered to pay over $250 million in disgorgement and were permanently barred from the US securities industry. The company has since ceased operations.

A Warning for Gatekeepers

The case against Oyebola highlights the SEC’s increasing focus on holding “gatekeepers” — such as auditors and lawyers — accountable for their role in facilitating financial fraud, regardless of where they are based. By pursuing a Nigerian accounting firm, the regulator is sending a clear message that professionals who enable misconduct targeting US markets will face severe consequences.

For Africa’s rapidly growing tech ecosystem, the Tingo saga and the subsequent enforcement actions serve as a stark reminder of the importance of robust corporate governance and the high stakes involved when accessing global capital markets.