A Nigerian conglomerate active in oil and gas, fertilizers and agriculture, MSM Group, has denied allegations of financial impropriety by a pressure group, the Oduduwa Transparency Network.
It said it had filed complaints to the relevant authorities and is cooperating with ongoing investigations.
“As a law-abiding corporate entity, MSM Group remains committed to full cooperation with the authorities to ensure justice is served,” the group’s chairman, Muazzam Mairawani, told journalists at a press conference in Abuja on Sunday.
The controversy follows a press conference held on August 6, 2025 by the Oduduwa Transparency Network, during which its president, Mahmud Adebayo, accused the company and its subsidiaries of money laundering, misappropriation of public funds, and conspiracy.
However, the group has condemned these claims, describing them as “fictitious and unsubstantiated.”
“I want to state clearly and categorically that these allegations are completely unfounded, baseless, and without any merit.
“They are attempts by faceless individuals to tarnish the reputation of our Group, which has, over the years, stood for excellence, transparency, and integrity in all its operations,” Mairawani said.
In a statement issued on August 13, MSM Group said it had formally petitioned key security and anti-corruption agencies to investigate the source of the allegations and hold the perpetrators accountable.
In a letter dated August 11, 2025, and addressed to the Inspector-General of Police, the Director-General of the Department of State Services, and the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the company, through its legal counsel Habeeb Oredola, urged the agencies to investigate and prosecute those behind the defamatory publications.
The letter read in part, “In the course of the press conference, the President of the Network—Mr. Mahmud Adebayo—made sweeping and unverifiable comments imputing the allegation of crime against the MSM Group.
“More specifically, Mr. Adebayo made fictitious and unsubstantiated allegations of money laundering, misappropriation of public funds and conspiracy against our client and its subsidiary companies.
“These allegations which are completely untrue were uttered maliciously by Mr. Mahmud Adebayo.”
Speaking on Sunday, Mairawani said, “The relevant authorities have been duly informed, and I can assure you that they are doing everything within their power to identify and apprehend those behind these malicious claims.
“We have built MSM Group on the values of trust, accountability, and innovation, and nothing will distract us from our mission of ‘Bringing Excellence to the Globe.’
“Our focus remains on expanding opportunities in key sectors of oil and gas, cement, shipping and power—contributing to national development, creating jobs, and improving the lives of millions.”
He pledged full cooperation with authorities, reaffirming its commitment to its mission.
Founded in 2011, MSM Group runs diversified operations spanning oil and gas, fertilizers, shipping and agriculture, among others.
In March 2025, the group signed a $2.4bn Memorandum of Understanding with Kebbi State to build a three-million-ton-per-annum cement plant, which, it said, will create at least 45,000 jobs.
