A Federal High Court In Lagos has ordered an Anambra State-owned company and seven other defendants to pay the sum of N1.703 billion in a debt recovery suit.

The judgment was delivered by Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa.

The defendants, led by Anambra J.C. Michael Nigeria Limited, were mandated to pay the sum to Keystone Bank as a summary judgment.

Other individuals and entities included in the court order are J.C. Michaels Nigeria Limited, Amuzie Jude Chukwuma, Amuzie Emmanuel Arinze, Joe Billy Ekwunife, Ilobi Uzoamaka Gladys, and Ifediora Chimezie Amobi.

The ruling followed an ex parte motion on an undefended suit filed by Keystone Bank, which sought to recover a substantial debt tied to a stalled market development project.

According to court documents, the bank had provided a series of credit facilities to the defendants for the construction of a 10,000-shop ultra-modern market in Isiagu, Awka, Anambra State. The project was a joint venture between J.C. Michaels Nigeria Limited and the Anambra State Government.

Initially, the bank granted a N1.2 billion facility for the first phase of the project, which was later increased to N1.7 billion.

However, the defendants allegedly failed to repay the debt, prompting multiple demand letters from the bank and heightened scrutiny from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

A key piece of evidence in the case was a letter from the first defendant, Anambra J.C. Michael Nigeria Limited, dated 29 May 2024.

In the correspondence, the company unequivocally admitted its indebtedness and offered to pay N1.703 billion as a full and final settlement.

When the defendants failed to honour this undertaking, the bank proceeded with legal action under the undefended list procedure, which is applied when there is no dispute over the debt.

Justice Lewis-Allagoa granted the bank’s motion, ordering the defendants to pay the admitted sum.

The judgment also includes pre-judgment interest at a rate of 9% per annum from 29 May 2024 until the date of judgment.

Furthermore, the court granted a post-judgment interest of 25% per annum until the full liquidation of the debt.

The judge’s ruling confirmed that the defendants’ continuous failure to repay their loans exposed the bank to significant hardship and regulatory oversight from the CBN.

The court noted that the defendants had no justifiable defence to the bank’s claim, making the undefended list procedure the appropriate course of action.

While the court awarded N1.703 billion, the substantive suit filed by Keystone Bank seeks to recover a much larger sum.

The bank’s writ claims an outstanding indebtedness of N2.799 billion as of 2 April 2025, along with an additional N20 million for the cost of the lawsuit.

The case has been adjourned to 14 October 2025 for further hearing on these remaining claims. (Nigerian Tribune)