The Supreme Court has ordered Fidelity Bank to pay over a whopping N225 billion in damages to an Ibadan-based company, Sagecom Concept Ltd, following a protracted legal dispute.
The huge amount awarded against the bank is being actively debated on social media, especially X (Twitter), where Fidelity Bank is one of the top five trending topics at the time of filing this report.
The hefty sum is described as the most severe the bank has ever faced, and there are fears it could push the institution toward insolvency.
The Lagos-based bank has begun talks with Sagecom’s legal team to negotiate a repayment plan, though the Supreme Court’s emphasis on urgency may prevent the bank from spreading out the massive sum without jeopardising its financial stability.
“This is an existential threat,” a senior executive at the bank told Peoples Gazette under anonymity. “If we survive this, it will be because Sagecom shows leniency.”
Despite posting N385 billion in profit before tax for 2024, Fidelity’s balance sheet may not be able to absorb the N225 billion penalty.
Much of its reported earnings stemmed from rolled-over loans, and officials say the underlying liquidity is weak. As of Friday, the bank’s shares closed at N20.80, with a 140% year-to-date increase.
The Central Bank of Nigeria is expected to step in to prevent the collapse of a major financial institution, sources suggest. However, no bailout plans or underwriting partners had been confirmed by Monday.
The case dates back to the early 2000s when G. Cappa Plc obtained loans from FSB International Bank — $3 million and N100 million — which Fidelity later inherited following its 2005 acquisition of FSB. G. Cappa defaulted on the high-interest loans, and Fidelity began seizing its assets despite a federal court injunction.
Sagecom, run by Bamidele Ogunkanmi and U.S.-based Dakore Miriki, purchased some of the contested properties from Fidelity for N350 million, unaware of the court order.
When the company discovered the legal complications, it attempted to recover its money, triggering a long legal battle.
After several defeats in lower courts, Fidelity appealed to the Supreme Court, which ruled unanimously on April 11, 2025, against the bank.
Justice Adamu Jauro, delivering the lead judgment, said Fidelity acted in “deliberate disregard” of a court order and that the bank should not benefit from its own wrongdoing.
Justice Jummai Hannatu Sankey echoed this, describing Fidelity’s conduct as intentional and “egregious.”
The court emphasised that Fidelity’s failure to disclose the restraining order, while proceeding with the sale of G. Cappa’s assets, constituted a gross abuse of the judicial process.
The justices upheld a 2011 Lagos High Court ruling that awarded damages to Sagecom for loss of economic benefit and possession of the properties.
As of May 16, 2025, the court calculated the damages at $139 million, converted to N225.3 billion using the official exchange rate of N1620 to the dollar.
Fidelity is expected to challenge the conversion rate in a May 19 hearing before Justice Olabisi Akinlade, but legal observers say a significant adjustment is unlikely.
Akinlade’s notes indicated that the naira figure would ultimately be based on the exchange rate at the time of actual payment.
Fidelity Bank, led by CEO Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, is Nigeria’s sixth-largest bank by asset base.
Once chaired by Peter Obi — now the country’s opposition leader — the bank has long faced criticism for harsh loan recovery tactics.
Most recently, it was blamed by a Lagos family for the death of a real estate investor amid a prolonged debt dispute.
The bank has denied wrongdoing in its loan dealings, often pointing to Central Bank mandates as the basis for its practices.
