The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), acting as liquidator of the defunct Gulf Bank Plc, has filed two separate suits against Wema Bank at the Federal High Court in Lagos, seeking the recovery of disputed Banana Island properties valued at about N125.38 billion and an alleged unauthorised payment of N401 million.
According to court documents shared with PREMIUM TIMES on Thursday, the case marked FHC/L/CP/466/26 and another companion suit, were filed under the Failed Banks (Recovery of Debts) and Financial Malpractices in Banks Act.
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The NDIC said the action forms part of efforts to recover assets linked to the defunct bank, whose licence was revoked by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in January.
At the centre of the dispute are 12 high-value properties in Banana Island, Lagos, which NDIC explained were acquired through companies linked to Gulf Bank before its collapse.
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NDIC is asking the court to declare the alleged disposal of the assets illegal and to compel Wema Bank to either return the title documents or pay the current value of the properties.
NDIC also challenged what it described as a disputed payment of N401 million, which it said was collected by Wema Bank from the United Bank for Africa (UBA), acting as its agent bank.
Gulf Bank collapsed after its operating licence was revoked by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on 16 January 2006, due to insolvency and failure to meet capitalisation requirements.
Allegations of asset stripping
In a witness statement on oath filed on 6 March, a former Deputy Director at NDIC and ex-head of its Criminal Investigation Unit, Joseph Okolonji, said he personally supervised investigations into the transactions.
He told the court that the probe uncovered alleged efforts to strip the defunct bank of six Banana Island properties registered in the name of Euston Wenberg Engineering Company Limited.
According to him, the properties, measuring 13,794.145 square metres, are now valued at about N62.07 billion based on an estimated rate of N4.5 million per square metre.
Mr Okolonji alleged that Wema Bank gave the impression that the assets were sold for N250 million, even though it had no legal interest in the properties.
He also said investigators found no evidence of any valid interbank deposit to justify Wema Bank’s custody of the assets.
NDIC disputes the alleged deposit
NDIC argued that Wema Bank’s claim was based on a purported interbank placement of N771.79 million allegedly linked to Gulf Bank.
However, it said a joint special examination conducted by the CBN and NDIC in 2005 found no record of such a deposit in Gulf Bank’s books.
The report, according to NDIC, showed that Gulf Bank later described the funds as investments tied to Bankers’ Acceptances involving Ibom Power Company and Grix Nigeria Limited—an explanation regulators rejected.
NDIC further said there were no supporting banking documents such as placement memoranda, deposit slips, or account statements to back the transaction.
It also faulted Wema Bank’s reliance on two managers’ cheques issued in 2005 by Access Bank and Intercontinental Bank, totalling N250 million, which it linked to the disputed properties.
The corporation described the figure as unrealistic, arguing that even a single Banana Island property at the time was worth more than N500 million.
Second suit over Bacad-linked properties
In the second suit, NDIC is also challenging ownership of another six Banana Island properties allegedly acquired through Bacad Finance and Investment Limited, later renamed Supra Commercials Limited.
NDIC said Gulf Bank held the majority shares in the company and used it to acquire the properties, which cover about 13,979.974 square metres and are now valued at N62.91 billion.
It alleged that the bank later planned to develop the land into a luxury estate in partnership with Shelter Afrique before its collapse.
The corporation said Wema Bank later took possession of the assets and claimed they were sold for N524 million through managers’ cheques issued between 2006 and 2007.
It also accused the bank of collecting N401 million from UBA in 2009, despite earlier approval of only about N1.63 million as the amount due after liquidation.
NDIC said it had referred aspects of the transactions to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for investigation.
It listed several senior lawyers and retired security officials involved in its probe, including Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) D.A. Awosika, Pekun Sowole, retired Deputy Inspector General of Police Abiodun Alabi, and Joseph Okolonji.
The corporation also said it would call estate valuer Adebare Esan as a witness.
Wema Bank’s objection
Wema Bank, through its legal team led by Oladapo Olanipekun, Kehinde Ogunwunmiju, and Tunde Afe-Babalola, who are all SANs, challenged the jurisdiction of the court.
It argued that the dispute did not arise from a banking transaction covered by the Failed Banks Act and insisted that there was no debtor-creditor relationship between the two parties.
The bank also argued that the case is statute-barred, saying the transactions occurred between 2006 and 2007.
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It urged the court to dismiss the suits.
The court adjourned the matter until 25 June for further hearing.
Background
NDIC, as the statutory liquidator of failed banks in Nigeria, is empowered to recover assets and liabilities on behalf of depositors. Its action in this case is anchored on the Failed Banks (Recovery of Debts) and Financial Malpractices in Banks Act, which gives the Federal High Court jurisdiction over such matters.
Gulf Bank Plc was wound up after its licence was revoked by the Central Bank of Nigeria. Since then, NDIC has continued to trace and recover assets allegedly linked to the bank before its collapse.
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