Providus Bank Ordered To Refund N320m Stolen From Customer

Providus Bank Limited has been ordered to return over N320 million wrongfully transferred from a customer’s account.

The order was contained in a judgment by a federal high court in Lagos against the commercial bank in a suit filed by the customer, Aqua 10 Nigeria Limited.

The firm had dragged the bank to court for withdrawing without its authorization a whopping N329,454,650.28for its account.

According to an affidavit sworn to by the Managing Director of the company, Oladipo Okuntola, he alleged that N558,569,000 was withdrawn from its account in the bank to the account of Jethra Designs Investment Limited in another bank between July 9 and 12, last year without its authorization.

The company had afterwards dragged Providus Bank Limited to court alongside seven others.

The other companies are Vacubeg Investment Limited, Abiodun Shoyombo Trading under the name and style of Seatea Enterprises, Jethra Designs Investment Limited, Vacubeg Group of companies limited, Heroes Heights construction company Limited, North Alta Trading Limited, and Adeyemi Digital Enterprises.

Detailing how the money was fraudulently moved from its Providus Bnak account Okuntola said three companies benefitted from the fraud. They are North Altappq Trading Limited -N93,361,828.97; Abiodun Shoyombo Trading under the name and style of Seatea Enterprises- N185,133,525,.08 and Abiodun Afeez Adeyemi Trading under the name and style of Adeyemi Digital Enterprises-N50,959,296.23.

He said “The matter was reported to the Interpol, and through Interpol, the movement of the plaintiff’s funds and the persons involved in the fraud were traced.

“The Plaintiff has requested that its funds traced to the 6th, 7th and 8th Defendants accounts in the Providus Bank who is also the Plaintiff’s bankers be returned, but the bank is insisting that without the court’s directive or order, the bank will not return the Plaintiff’s funds traced to the 6th, 7th and 8th Defendants’ accounts in the Providus bank.

“That unless the Court intervenes, the Providus bank will not return the Plaintiff’s money traced by Interpol into the accounts of the 6th, 7th and 8th Defendants domiciled in the bank. That it is in the interest of justice to grant this application.

While ruling on the matter Justice Lifu, ordered the bank “to move or transfer the plaintiff’s fund in the account of the 6th, 7th and 8th defendants to the plaintiff’s account kept with her.

“Since the sum of N50,700,000 has so far been reversed, the remaining balance in the total sum of N329,454,650.28 that is, less the N50,700,000 should be transferred to the plaintiff’s account forthwith.

The court also ordered a cost of N100,000 against Providus Bank Limited.