Zenith Bank reacts to claims of unpaid dividends to oil firm as police begins probe
- Zenith Bank has declared that it will follow the court's ruling regarding Aquitane Oil and Gas Limited's claims of unpaid dividends
- This came as the company petitioned Inspector-General of Police about Zenith Bank's alleged falsification of the business's financial statements
- Responding to the case, Zenith Bank's deputy general manager said that the financial institution is being defended in court
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Zenith Bank has stated that it will abide by the court's decision regarding the claims of unpaid dividends made by Aquitane Oil and Gas Limited.
Source: Getty Images
The bank's deputy general manager, Chinedu Zeph, said this in an interview recently.
What happened
On November 7, Aquitane Oil and Gas Limited filed a petition with Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Kayode Egbetokun regarding Zenith Bank's "falsification" of the company's account statement in order to "conceal" the lender's nonpayment of dividends.
Through its legal counsel, Lukman O. Fagbemi & Co., Aquitane Oil filed a petition on October 11, 2024, requesting that the IGP look into Zenith Bank's efforts to "conceal the illegalities committed" in relation to the company's interests in the financial institution.
According to Aquitane Oil, when Zenith Bank made its initial public offering (IPO) in 2008, it bought 10,775,399 shares and 17,425,300 shares through its subsidiaries, Globular Trading Investment Services Ltd. and Southern Grace Investment Ltd.
According to the oil business, Southern Grace and Globular Trading discovered in 2020 that Zenith Bank had not been paying dividends on their shares since 2008.
The bank was accused by Aquitane Oil of not paying more than N1.4 billion in dividends that were due from 10,775,299 and 17,425,300 shares that belonged to its associate companies.
Police begins probe
Two weeks after police started looking into the incident, the oil company said the bank has not yet addressed claims that the Aquitane Oil and Gas Limited statement of accounts was forged.
The company further claimed that senior officials who were invited to be questioned at the Force Criminal Investigation Department, including the chief compliance officer and the account officer in charge of Zenith Bank's accounts, had declined to accept the police invitation due to the ongoing investigation.
Zenith Bank reacts
The deputy general manager of Zenith Bank informed TheCable that the case is already in court in order to defend the financial organization.
Zeph claims that after the case went to court, the police asked the bank executive to be questioned.
He stated that it is best for both parties to wait for a decision because the case was already in court.
“This is a person who was owing the bank, and then he used the money to buy shares and was enjoying dividends in another name,” he said.
“The law set off in Nigeria says when you owe a bank, anywhere you have money in this country can be applied to clear your loan. If he’s not happy with it, we’re already in court.”
Zeph, however, said although several versions of the story are in the media, he would advise that the judgement of the court be awaited “rather than taking sides or giving malicious reports”.
CBN governor gives update on financial health of bank
Legit.ng reported that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has affirmed that the country’s Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) remain robust despite facing both domestic and international challenges.
CBN Governor Yemi Cardoso made this known on Tuesday, November 26, 2024, in Abuja while delivering a communiqué following the 298th meeting of the apex bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC).
It would be recalled that during September's committee meeting, Cardoso had assured Nigerians that the country's banking sector continues to be secure, stable, and robust.
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Source: Legit.ng
