A Federal High Court in Lagos has granted permission to Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) to temporarily seize the funds and assets of Afex Commodities Exchange following an indebtedness of ₦17.8bn Central Bank of Nigeria anchor borrowers’ loan.
Ruling on an ex parte application by GTBank through its lawyers Ajibola Aribisala and Ade Adedeji, Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke granted an order of interim global standing instruction (GSI) injunctive relief.
The debt comprises ₦15,766,475,417.06 being the amount outstanding and unpaid, as of April 17, 2024, on the loan facilities (with the accrued interest) granted by the plaintiff to the defendant.
Cost of recovery and incidental expenses is put at ₦2,041,977,050.047.
GTBank is the sole plaintiff/applicant in the suit, Afex Commodities Exchange is the defendant/respondent, while 27 commercial banks and all money deposit banks were listed as nominal respondents.
Tha bank via a 285-page affidavit deposed to by a member of staff, Ifeoma Esemudje, disclosed that the tenor of the facility was nine months, intended to finance smallholder farmers registered under the CBN anchor borrower’s program.
The source of the repayment was to come from the sale of the maize produced while the maturity date for the loan was April 22, 2021.
But, according to the plaintiff, the defendant did not fulfil its end of the deal.
The judge further directed all banks in Nigeria to move/transfer all monies standing to the alleged debtor’s credit (in the said debtor’s account domiciled in any of the banks) into the debtor’s account domiciled with GTBank with Account Number 0425755319 until Afex Commodities Exchange’s “entire indebtedness to the Plaintiff/Applicant in sum of ₦17,808,452,467.107 is fully liquidated…”
Justice Aneke also restrained the defendant/respondent and its agents from obstructing or interfering with GTBank’s right to enter Afex Commodities Exchange’s 16 warehouses across seven federation states.
The states are the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Oyo, Ogun, Kwara, Kano, Taraba and Benue.
It further granted a mandatory injunction commanding the defendant/respondent to allow the plaintiff to appoint its appointed agent to take over the commodities/produce stored by the defendant in the 16 warehouses across the seven states.
Lastly, the court granted an order directing the police and civil defence corps to assist GTBank in securing and dealing with the commodities/produce stored by the defendant in the 16 warehouses across the seven states.
The judge adjourned hearing in the suit till June 10, 2024.
