E-Financial
NDIC Drags Wema Bank to Court over N125.38Bn Banana Island Assets
Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), acting as liquidator of the defunct Gulf Bank Plc., has instituted two separate actions at the Federal High Court in Lagos against Wema Bank Plc.
The combined claims amount to approximately N125,384,535,500, arising from two distinct sets of disputed high-value properties in Banana Island, Lagos, alongside an alleged improper cash transaction of N401 million.
Both suits were filed under the Failed Banks (Recovery of Debts and Financial Malpractices in Banks) Act and form part of NDIC’s long-running efforts to recover and liquidate outstanding assets of the defunct Gulf Bank nearly two decades after its collapse.
The two actions, though related, concern distinct sets of six properties each, acquired through different shell companies allegedly used by the defunct bank.
The first suit concerns six properties in Banana Island purchased in the name of Euston Wenberg Engineering Company Limited, described in the pleadings as a shell company used by Gulf Bank.
These plots situate in Zones J, K, L and P, have a combined area of approximately 13,794.145 square metres.
At the prevailing market rate of N4,500,000 per square metre, NDIC values these properties at N62,073,652,500.
The second suit concerns a separate set of six properties in Banana Island acquired through Bacad Finance and Investment Limited (later renamed Supra Commercials Limited), another entity in which the defunct bank held over 80 per cent shareholding.
These plots have a combined area of approximately 13,979.974 square metres, valued at N62,909,883,000 at the same per-square-metre rate.
In addition, the second suit claims recovery of N401,000,000 allegedly collected by Wema Bank from the NDIC’s agent bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA), in September 2009.
The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria revoked Gulf Bank Plc’s banking licence by notice published in the Official Gazette of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (Volume 93, Number 3, Government Notice No. 7) dated January 16, 2006, and the Federal High Court, Lagos Division, subsequently made a winding-up order on November 27, 2006, appointing NDIC as liquidator.
On the basis of those instruments, the Corporation maintains it is legally mandated to trace, recover, and liquidate all outstanding assets of the defunct bank for the benefit of depositors and creditors.
In the first suit, NDIC alleged that Gulf Bank acquired six Banana Island plots between 1998 and 2003 using Euston Wenberg Engineering Company Limited as a vehicle.
The internal records of the defunct bank reportedly treated the acquisition as a loan account, an arrangement NDIC contended shows the assets remain beneficially owned by Gulf Bank.
NDIC further alleged that Wema Bank took custody of these properties purportedly to secure an interbank deposit of N771.79 million, but that a joint CBN/NDIC special examination conducted in September 2005 found no record in Gulf Bank’s books confirming that any such deposit existed.
The examination report, dated September 30, 2005, found the defunct bank’s explanations unsatisfactory and no supporting documentation was subsequently produced.
According to NDIC, Wema Bank later presented two managers’ cheques from Access Bank and Intercontinental Bank, both dated September 2005 totaling N250 million in favour of Euston Wenberg Engineering Limited, which NDIC framed as instruments for a purchase rather than a recovery of a deposit.
NDIC contended that the purported sale at N250 million was commercially implausible, given that a single property in Banana Island at that time was worth in excess of N500 million.
In the second suit, NDIC also alleged that Gulf Bank injected N20 million into Bacad Finance and Investment Limited in 2001 to increase its share capital, and later invested a further N60 million in the company in 2003.
The defunct bank ultimately held over 80 per cent of Bacad Finance’s shares and used the entity to acquire a second set of six Banana Island plots.
The pleadings record that the defunct bank intended to develop the properties as a luxury residential estate of 72 flats, to be called Bacad Estate, in partnership with Shelter Afrique.
NDIC alleged that Wema Bank, without any valid mortgage, court order, or proprietary interest, took custody of these properties and later claimed to have sold them for N524 million by way of managers’ cheques dated 2006 and 2007.
NDIC described this claimed sale price as grossly implausible given that each property was worth over N4 billion by that period.
Separately, NDIC stated that in June 2009 it wrote to Wema Bank approving payment of N1,635,616.44 as the full outstanding deposit due to the bank as at January 16, 2006, the date Gulf Bank went into liquidation.
Notwithstanding that communication, NDIC alleged that in September 2009 Wema Bank collected N401 million from UBA, NDIC’s agent bank, without lawful justification, and that the Corporation has no record showing Wema Bank was owed any sum beyond the approved N1.635 million.
Wema Bank, through its counsel, Dr Oladapo Olanipekun (SAN), Mr Kehinde Ogunwunmiju (SAN) and Mr Tunde Afe-Babalola (SAN) have filed a preliminary objection challenging the court’s jurisdiction.
The bank relies on the Failed Banks Act, the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) 2020, the Limitation Law of Lagos State, and Sections 6(6) and 251(1) of the 1999 Constitution.
Wema Bank argued that NDIC’s claims do not arise from any loan, credit facility, guarantee or banking transaction between the parties, as required under the Failed Banks Act, and that the bank was never a customer of Gulf Bank in respect of any credit facility.
The bank further contended that the suits disclose no debtor-creditor relationship and that NDIC lacks locus standi because the disputed properties were allegedly owned by Bacad Finance and Investment Limited (now Supra Commercials Limited), a separate legal entity.
According to Wema Bank, the matter is fundamentally one of property ownership rather than banking debt recovery, placing it outside the Federal High Court’s jurisdiction under Section 251(1) of the Constitution.
The bank also argued that any cause of action, if it existed at all, arose between 2006 and 2007 and is now statute-barred under the Limitation Law of Lagos State, and accuses NDIC of abusing court process by attempting to circumvent limitation laws with a stale claim.
Wema Bank is asking the court to strike out or dismiss both suits.
The matters have been adjourned to June 25, 2026 for further proceedings.
Cybercriminals have developed a new Android malware that can turn victims smartphones into a bridge for stealing bank card information and carrying out contactless payment fraud, cybersecurity researchers have warned.
The malware, identified as WindRelay, operates in conjunction with a known remote-access trojan, SpyNote, to capture live information exchanged between a physical bank card and an Android phone via Near Field Communication (NFC).
NFC is the short-range technology that enables contactless payments when a bank card or smartphone is tapped against a payment terminal.
According to cybersecurity firm Group-IB, WindRelay was detected in the wild in August 2025 and has been used in a social-engineering scheme targeting victims in Czechia, Slovakia and Slovenia.
Meanwhile, the fraud begins with a phone call, text message or other communication in which criminals pretend to be bank officials.
The victim is persuaded to install an application, often personalised with the victim’s name, and once installed, SpyNote gives the criminal remote access to the phone and can silently install WindRelay, with the victim then tricked into placing a physical bank card against the infected smartphone, supposedly for identity verification, PIN change, or account resolution.
WindRelay reads the card’s NFC signals and sends the information in real time to another device controlled by the criminal, with such a device then imitating the victim’s card at a payment terminal or ATM, as the victim’s smartphone becomes a wireless bridge between the victim’s bank card and the criminal’s device.
Group-IB said it identified 23 WindRelay samples uploaded to VirusTotal between November 2025 and July 2026, with the malware samples impersonating financial institutions in Czechia, Slovakia and Slovenia.
Meanwhile, the development adds to existing concerns over the use of mobile devices in cybercrime and financial fraud in Nigeria.
In June, the Nigeria Computer Emergency Response Team (ngCERT) issued an advisory on IPIDEA malware and malicious residential proxy networks, warning that the malware could hijack consumers internet connections and use compromised devices as part of criminal proxy networks.
While the ngCERT advisory concerns a different malware and attack method, both incidents highlight a growing risk: ordinary smartphones and connected devices can be secretly turned into tools for cybercriminals.
This is particularly relevant as Nigerians increasingly rely on smartphones for mobile banking, digital payments and other financial services.
Consequently, cybersecurity experts have advised users not to install applications sent through unsolicited calls, text messages or links, especially when the sender claims to represent a bank, as users should also be suspicious of requests to place payment cards against smartphones for supposed account verification.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has cleared additional Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) for admission into its Accelerated Regulatory Incubation Programme (ARIP).
Among the newly cleared is BC Access Nigeria Limited (Blockchain), marking an important step in the company’s long-term commitment to Nigeria and its broader expansion across Africa.
Nigeria is one of Africa’s most important digital asset markets, where crypto increasingly plays a practical role in how people access, hold and move.
Value Admission into ARIP means Blockchain has satisfied the SEC’s initial requirements to participate in the programme and is authorised to operate within its defined sandbox scope, subject to the Commission’s ongoing compliance obligations, testing parameters, and regulatory conditions.
Through ARIP, Blockchain can work directly with the SEC as the Commission evaluates digital asset business models, tests. appropriate safeguards and develops its long-term regulatory framework for the market.
Speaking, General Manager for Africa, Blockchain, Owen Odia, said: “Nigeria is one of Africa’s most important digital asset markets and participating in the SEC’s ARIP is an important step forward in our long-term commitment to the country.
“The programme gives us the opportunity to work directly with the SEC in a controlled environment, bring our global experience to the Nigerian market and help support a framework that protects consumers while enabling responsible innovation. We appreciate the SEC’s proactive approach and look forward to contributing to a safe, transparent and well-regulated digital asset ecosystem.”
Blockchain’s participation in ARIP forms part of a broader global strategy to engage constructively with regulators and build within established regulatory frameworks.
Over the past year, Blockchain has secured several formal licenses and registrations globally, including the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), EU Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA), and Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) License. Participating in Nigeria’s ARIP sandbox builds on that experience, bringing global standards in compliance, security and consumer protection to its local operations.
For Blockchain, ARIP provides a structured environment to test services for the Nigerian market, strengthen consumer protections and work directly with regulators and local stakeholders.
The company sees Nigeria as an important market in its African strategy, with strong existing demand for digital assets and an increasingly clear regulatory pathway for responsible operators. The company’s strategy materials specifically identify Nigeria as an important market for its African expansion.
ARIP was established by Nigeria’s SEC as a controlled regulatory sandbox for VASPs and fintech innovators. The programme allows the SEC to observe live applications of digital asset technologies, study operational risks, and establish tailored investor protection and anti-money laundering (AML) standards before final regulatory rules are codified.
Blockchain is pleased to participate in ARIP as we work alongside regulators to support responsible innovation, consumer protection and market integrity.
Founded in 2011, Blockchain is one of the world’s longest-standing digital asset companies with more than 95 million wallets, more than 44 million confirmed accounts and over $1.2 trillion processed.
Leadway Assurance has unveiled the Leadway Lifetime Plan, a one-of-a-kind whole-of-life insurance solution designed to extend financial protection beyond the immediate household to the wider family circle.
The newly introduced plan unveiled at a press briefing in Lagos reinforces Leadway’s commitment to building lasting financial security, preserving wealth, and delivering meaningful, long-term protection for the people who matter most.
The Leadway Lifetime Plan responds to the increasingly complex financial responsibilities faced by many working adults, particularly members of the Sandwich Generation individuals who simultaneously provide financial support for ageing parents while raising children and planning for their future.
With family responsibilities now extending beyond the traditional nuclear household, the Leadway Lifetime Plan is designed to offer broader, long-term protection that reflects the realities of modern Nigerian families.
Speaking on the new insurance plan, Olufunmilayo Amanwa, executive director, Technical & Operations, Leadway Assurance, said the product reflects the insurer’s recognition that family structures and financial responsibilities are evolving, and that insurance solutions must evolve with them.
“Financial responsibility no longer stops at the nuclear family. Today, one individual may be supporting children, a spouse, ageing parents, and in some cases, parents-in-law or siblings, all at once. That reality demands a different approach to protection.
The Leadway Lifetime Plan was built around this reality. It gives customers a way to extend continuous protection to the extended family, ensuring the people who depend on them are covered, while also delivering meaningful benefits to policyholders within their own lifetime. This is the Leadway way, designing solutions that respond to how people actually live, not recycling old products with new names”
Beyond traditional life protection, the Leadway Lifetime Plan incorporates a range of living benefits designed to provide financial support during critical stages of life.
Following five years of complete premium payment and subject to the policy terms, the policyholder and spouse may access up to 50 per cent of their current sum assured upon diagnosis of a covered critical illness. This benefit can provide valuable financial support at a time when a serious health event may place pressure on income, savings and overall household stability.
The plan also provides greater long-term financial flexibility. Eligible policyholders may access up to 50 per cent of the policy value for significant life goals after the premium payment term plus five years, subject to applicable policy conditions.
While Leadway’s existing Family Benefit Plan provides family-focused whole-life protection, the Lifetime Plan has been developed as a more expansive, multi-generational solution that combines lifelong protection with financial value that can be accessed during the policyholder’s lifetime.
Explaining the thinking behind the product, Rosetta Aryeetey, head, Life Underwriting and Life Business, Leadway Assurance said the solution was developed around the changing needs of customers. “The starting point for the Leadway Lifetime Plan was the customer.
We looked closely at how families are structured Today, how financial responsibilities are shared and the challenges customers face when they are responsible for several generations at the same time. What emerged was a need for a solution that does more than pay a benefit after death. Customers need protection for the people who depend on them, but they also need support when critical life events occur and flexibility as their financial priorities evolve.”
She added that the combination of multi-life protection, living benefits, long-term value and flexibility makes the Lifetime Plan relevant across different stages of a customer’s financial journey.
The plan also offers flexibility to enhance financial protection over time through an Escalation of Sum Assured feature. This allows customers to increase their benefits by a fixed percentage, giving them the flexibility to align their level of protection with their evolving financial needs and circumstances.
With the launch, Leadway Assurance is reinforcing its commitment to developing insurance solutions that respond to real-life needs while helping families build resilience, preserve financial stability and create lasting legacies.
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