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Our dealings are clean and legitimate – Sterling Bank

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Sterling Bank Plc has said its dealings being a lead bank in an N8 billion syndicated loan-financing transaction between it and Grant Properties Limited, a property development company, owned by one Chief Olajide Awosedo, which spanned over a decade solely with depositors funds was transparent.

The bank’s rebuttal followed a report by an online news medium where Grant Properties accused the lender of withholding and selling 10-hectares from its 50-hectare land used as collateral to Mr. Yemi Idowu, its one-time non-executive director.

Refuting the allegations, Sterling Bank said it was not true that 10 hectares of land was sold to Mr. Yemi Idowu, the non-executive director of the bank.
“It is not true that 10 hectares of land was sold to Mr. Yemi Idowu. The 10 hectares was sold to a Company known as the Real Estate Development (RED) Company Limited and the decision to sell the 10 hectares was a joint decision between the Consortium of Banks (Wema, Skye, Unity & Sterling) and the Developer (Grant Properties/Chief Olajide Awosedo) as the proceeds of sale was to be used to refund subscribers of Phase 2 of the project who had become restive due to the failure of the Developer to commence work on the project( deliver various housing units with deposit from subscribers in excess of N2.1billion). Sterling Bank could not have singlehandedly sold any part of the land as the security was pledged to the Banking consortium that financed the project. It is instructive to note that the proceeds of sale of the 10 hectares was passed to Grant Properties/Chief Awosedo for onward transmission to the subscribers that had demanded for a refund.

The bank also explained that the claim by Grant Properties Limited that a court ruling pronounced the land sale illegal was also not true. According to Sterling Bank, “It is not true that that the Court pronounced the sale as illegal. The Court Ruling related to only 2.4 hectares out of the 10 hectares which the RED Company subsequently sold to UAC Property Development Company (UPDC) and this is now subject of an Appeal at the Court of Appeal Lagos. The Court did not void the sale of the 10 hectares to RED Company and there is no Order of Court that the 10 hectares be returned to the Grant Properties.”

On why Sterling Bank allegedly took out 10 hectares of the loan security for sale, the lender said “We reiterate that Sterling Bank did not convert or single handedly sell the 10 hectares of land to any insider or third party. The sale of the 10 hectares was done by the consortium of Banks with the consent of Grant Properties/Chief Awosedo.”
It reiterated that the 10 hectares had been sold before the transfer of loan to Assets Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON) and therefore did not form part of the assets transferred to AMCON by the Consortium of Banks.

On what happens to the proceeds from the sales, Sterling Bank said: “The said proceeds were passed to Grant Properties/Chief Awosedo for onward transmission to settle subscribers to a housing project it halted before the AMCON take-over of the bad loan incurred from the banks/Grant Properties transaction. Despite the AMCON window, the consortium had to write off approximately N3billion from upon the sale of the bad loan to AMCON.

The business deal started in 2002 when Grant Properties secured a 50-hectare land in Lekki, Lagos state, to build “Victory Park Estate”. It approached the legacy banks of Unity Bank, Skye Bank, Wema Bank and Sterling Bank for an N8 billion ongoing loan to partly fund the project (to fund the purchase, sand filling and development of the land as site & Services for sale. NAL merchant, the legacy bank of Sterling was the lead of the consortium. Grant Properties transferred the shares in its subsidiary, Knight Rook Limited, to the banks as security for the loan having purchased the Asset fully with bank loan

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Dennis Ekamah Isn’t Building Houses—He’s Redefining What Home Means for Africans Through PropTech

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Dennis Ekamah Isn’t Building Houses—He’s Redefining What Home Means for Africans Through PropTech.

 

The founder of coHouse.ng is reimagining how millions of Africans access, experience, and share housing through technology.

 

In Africa’s rapidly evolving innovation landscape, the most transformative companies are no longer defined by the industries they enter, but by the systems they redesign.

 

For Dennis Ekamah, the opportunity was never about constructing buildings, it was about confronting a deeper question.

 

why is access to housing still so structurally difficult for millions of Africans in a digital age?

 

Rather than stepping into real estate as a developer. Dennis chose a different path, positioning coHouse.ng as a PropTech platform rethinking how housing is accessed, experienced, and shared. At the heart of this vision which is connecting potential home owners together via resource pooling for the purpose of either Living or Growth. Simply, *Connect. Live. Grow.*

 

*A Platform Not a Property Company*

 

coHouse.ng is not a real estate company. It is a technology-driven ecosystem connecting like-minded individuals into structured communities where they can live intentionally, invest collectively, and grow within a shared system.

 

From Insight to Recognition

 

In 2025, coHouse.ng was recognised among the Top 50 Tech Startups in Africa. Even ahead of its official launch, the platform attracted over 1,000 early waitlist users, individuals eager to be part of a new way of living and investing.

 

Solving for Access, Alignment, and Trust

 

Dennis Ekamah’s diagnosis goes deeper than supply shortfalls. The real barriers he argues are access, coordination, and trust. coHouse.ng tackles all three through identity verification powered by a third party verification system api. coHouse is not flying solo without the help and collaboration with government bodies across Nigeria and other African countries.

 

In his words;

“Imagine what you would achieve as an individual or group if you’re living with the right people or like-minded individuals around you.”

 

I’m not a developer, I’m not a professional realtor, I’m just someone who sees the need for this solution based on the problem we face as youth/young entrepreneurs in today’s housing deficiency across Africa.

— Dennis Ekamah

 

Join our waitlist by visiting www.cohouse.ng

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Landmark Judgment: Federal High Court Dismisses ₦50bn Oil Spill Claim Against ExxonMobil

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Landmark Judgment: Federal High Court Dismisses ₦50bn Oil Spill Claim Against ExxonMobil

 

The Federal High Court sitting in Uyo has dismissed a ₦50 billion lawsuit filed against ExxonMobil, sued as Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited, now Seplat Energy Producing, in a ruling analysts say could significantly reshape oil spill litigation and compensation claims in Nigeria’s petroleum sector.

Delivering judgment on April 29, 2026, Justice Onyetenu held that the suit instituted by the Ejige Ore Njenyisi Muma & Fishing Co-operative Society Ltd was incompetent and liable to dismissal for lack of jurisdiction.

The plaintiffs had sought ₦50 billion in damages over an alleged hydrocarbon spill said to have occurred on September 12, 2021.

However, counsel to the defendant, Chinonso Ekuma of KENNA LP, successfully argued that the claimants failed to disclose any legally recognisable violation attributable to the oil firm.

In its findings, the court held that the plaintiffs failed to establish any actionable wrongdoing against the defendant.

A key element in the court’s decision was the Joint Investigation Visit (JIV) Report tendered by the plaintiffs themselves, which showed that the alleged spill incident was confined within ExxonMobil’s operational facility and did not impact the members of the cooperative society or their sources of livelihood.

The court further ruled that claims arising from such incidents must be pursued strictly under the statutory compensation framework provided in Section 11(5) of the Oil Pipelines Act, rather than through common-law claims founded on negligence or nuisance.

Justice Onyetenu held that the plaintiffs’ attempt to circumvent the statutory regime by framing the suit as a tort action rendered the matter incompetent before the court, thereby depriving it of jurisdiction.

Legal analysts say the judgment reinforces the supremacy of the Oil Pipelines Act in determining compensation procedures relating to oil pipeline incidents and environmental claims in Nigeria.

The ruling is also seen as strengthening the evidential weight of Joint Investigation Visit Reports, particularly in cases where such reports indicate no direct impact on claimants or host communities.

Industry observers believe the judgment will have far-reaching implications for future oil spill litigation, especially regarding the procedural requirements for compensation claims against oil operators.

The court’s decision further provides clarity for operators within Nigeria’s energy sector by reaffirming that compliance with Section 11(5) of the Oil Pipelines Act is mandatory and cannot be sidestepped through alternative legal formulations.

While K.O. Uzuokwu appeared for the plaintiffs, the defence was led by Chinonso Ekuma of KENNA LP on behalf of ExxonMobil.

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Union Bank Honoured by ASBON at Nigeria National SME Business Awards

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Union Bank Honoured by ASBON at Nigeria National SME Business Awards

 

 

Lagos, Nigeria – Union Bank of Nigeria has reaffirmed its reputation as a strong supporter of Nigerian businesses, receiving the Best SME Growth Banking Initiatives Award for 2025 from the Association of Small Business Owners of Nigeria (ASBON) at the Nigeria National SME Business Awards, held recently in Lagos.

The award was presented to the Bank in recognition of its strategic leadership in advancing the growth and resilience of small and medium-sized enterprises, through a differentiated suite of solutions designed to enable business expansion and long-term value creation.

Receiving the award on behalf of the Bank, Ayokunnumi Abraham, Head of SME Segment at Union Bank, described the recognition as a strong endorsement of the Bank’s commitment to supporting small and medium-sized businesses. He said:

“We are honoured to receive this recognition, which reflects Union Bank’s continued commitment to helping SMEs grow by making banking simpler, faster, and more accessible. Through enhancements to our specialised platforms such as Union360, we have meaningfully reduced the time it takes for businesses to come on board and begin transacting. These improvements have shortened onboarding, increased digital adoption among our SME customers, and supported the acquisition of new business clients. Our focus remains on delivering practical solutions that help Nigerian businesses thrive.”

Organised by ASBON in partnership with the Lagos State Government through the Ministry of Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment, the event convened stakeholders from the public and private sectors to recognise individuals and organisations driving meaningful impact across Nigeria’s SME ecosystem.

Union Bank remains focused on deepening its support for SMEs through customer-led solutions and processes that strengthen business growth across the ecosystem.

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