Union Bank has filed a committal proceeding application before a Federal High Court in Lagos, against six top executive officers of Opay Digital Services Limited, over alleged disobedience to court orders.
Listed as the alleged contemnors in the suit marked FHC/L/CS/629/2025 are: Opay Digital Services Limited’s Managing Director, Gotring Dauda Wutrika, alongside five of the company’s directors – Wang Dan, Wen Mingxuan, Duyao Huang Simon, Ozoemena Chijioke, and Abass Rashidat Motunrayo.
The committal application is pursuant to a Form 49 – Notice to Show Cause Why an Order of Committal Should Not Be Made – pursuant to Section 72 of the Sheriff and Civil Process Act 1990 vide Order IX, Rule 13 of the Judgment Enforcement Procedure Rules.
Specifically, the applicant, Union Bank is praying the court for “an order of the Honourable Court committing the above-named Contemnors to a Correctional Centre for their wilful, deliberate and orchestrated disobedience to the Preservatory Order and Disclosure Order of the Court made on the 26th March, 2025 and Reversal Order contained in the Judgment of this Honourable Court delivered on the 15th April, 2025.
“An order of the Honourable Court that the said Contemnors lawfully and legitimately cited for contempt herein shall remain in a Correctional Centre and/or protective custody of any of the detaining security agencies or at any designated Correctional Centres/reformatory places in Nigeria’s territorial landscape until they purge themselves of the contempt of this Honourable Court.”
Union Bank Plc listed six grounds for the application as follows: “That this Honourable Court, in Orders 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 of the Preservatory and Disclosure Orders made on the 26th March, 2025, inter alia, mandated the Respondents, including Opay Digital Services Limited, to place a Post No Debit restriction on the accounts of its customers listed as primary and secondary beneficiaries of the wrongful transfers from the Applicant’s account, and to file an affidavit of compliance disclosing the salvaged sums”.
- “That Opay Digital Services Limited was duly served with the said Preservatory and Disclosure Orders of Court made on the 26th March, 2025, but has failed and/or refused to comply with the said Orders.
- “That this Honourable Court subsequently made a Reversal Order of the salvaged funds in its Judgment delivered on the 15th day of April 2025, directing the Respondents (Banks), including Opay Digital Services Limited, to immediately reverse to the Applicant all salvaged sums from the wrongful transfers made into their customers’ accounts.
- “That Opay Digital Services Limited was duly served with the Preservatory and Disclosure Orders as well as the Judgment of this Honourable Court, thereby notifying it of its obligation to reverse the salvaged funds, in addition to follow-up letters indicating the Applicant’s intention to initiate contempt proceedings against it.
- “That notwithstanding the above, Opay Digital Services Limited has failed and/or refused to disclose the relevant account details of the listed primary and secondary beneficiaries and has consequently not complied with the Preservatory and Disclosure Orders of this Honourable Court made on the 26th March 2025, nor the Reversal Order made on the 15th April 2025.
- “That the persons cited for contempt are principal officers of Opay Digital Services Limited who, by their actions and/or inactions, have colluded to deprive the Applicant of the funds wrongfully transferred into their customers’ accounts, thereby deliberately flouting the Orders of this Honourable Court made on the 26th March 2025, and the 15th April 2025”.
Observers of the financial sector in Nigeria have observed that this is not the first time that Opay Digital Services Limited has ignored court orders or requests from other players for fund reversals as if they are above the law.
It is hoped that the ongoing proceedings will reinforce the fact that court orders are not to be trifled with.
It is also expected that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as regulator of the sector will call players like Opay Digital Services Limited to order and ensure that the company, like other players respond quickly to court reversal orders in order to frustrate fraud and other untoward activities in Nigeria’s fast growing payment ecosystem.