Is Zenith Bank Involved in Fraud? Otedola’s Released Bank Statement Evidence Raises Questions

Femi Otedola, the big-shot billionaire, is pointing fingers at Jim Ovia, the Chairman at Zenith Bank, accusing him of playing dirty with the bank account of his company, Seaforce Shipping Limited.

Otedola says Zenith Bank was dipping its hands into Seaforce Shipping’s account without his Consent. Yep, they were supposedly doing business behind his back, starting way back in 2010 when the account was supposed to be on ice.

Otedola only found out about this sneaky business because someone spilled the beans from inside Zenith Bank. So, he starts poking around and finds out about all these fishy transactions happening under his nose.

Otedola says Zenith Bank cooked up a ginormous loan of 6 billion Naira under Seaforce Shipping’s name while Otedola insists that loan never even existed. They call it the “CP Facility,” but to him, it’s just smoke and mirrors.

Discrepancies in the bank statement

Zenith Bank sent a letter to Seaforce Shipping’s auditors, Shofolawe-Bakare & Co., dated March 19, 2018. In that letter, they claim that Seaforce Shipping owes a measly NGN 2,278,420. An actual look at the bank statement, tells a whole different story. 

The closing balance? A mind-boggling NGN -5,916,704,059.13. And if that wasn’t enough, the total debits come out to NGN 16,927,628,581.84, while the credits clock in at NGN 11,010,924,522.71, which doesn’t add up.

Otedola took to the court

Faced with these startling revelations, Otedola took Zenith Bank to court, alongside Seaforce Shipping, Zenon, Luzon Oil and Gas, Garment Care Limited, and himself. They scored a federal high court injunction against Zenith Bank, Quantum Zenith Securities and Investment, Veritas Registrar, and the Central Securities Clearing System.

This legal move barred from trading shares or dishing out dividends until a motion for an interlocutory injunction is sorted out. Zenith Bank had already declared a dividend of N3.5 per share on April 8, 2024, and paid up a month later. But thanks to this injunction, they’re stuck in limbo until the legal dust settles.

The Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID) has rolled up its sleeves and launched a probe into these allegations. Top dogs at Zenith Bank have already been grilled as part of this ongoing investigation.