The Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, has frozen assets and funds totalling ₦448,263,172.41 in a debt case involving Keystone Bank Limited and five defendants.

Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke granted the order on March 26, 2026, following a request from the bank through its lawyer, Mofesomo Tayo-Oyetibo, SAN.

The court issued a Mareva injunction preventing the defendants and anyone acting on their behalf from withdrawing, transferring, or handling the money, shares, dividends, or other financial instruments up to the disputed amount in any bank or financial institution in Nigeria.

Banks were instructed to preserve any funds linked to the defendants and to submit affidavits within seven days showing account balances and statements.

Additionally, the court ordered that the defendants could not sell, transfer, or otherwise dispose of any property, movable or immovable, including future or conditional interests, equivalent to the value of the debt.

Justice Aneke also allowed substituted service of court documents to two of the defendants via courier to their last known addresses. The next hearing was scheduled for April 9, 2026.

The dispute relates to a ₦500 million overdraft facility granted to Relic Resources on March 28, 2023, with a one-year term at an interest rate of 32 percent per year.

The facility, initially backed by a $200,000 cash collateral and later secured by a mortgaged property in Itunu City, Epe, Lagos, was due on March 27, 2024. As of October 31, 2024, ₦448,263,172.41 remained unpaid.

Court papers indicate that the bank claimed the funds were misused by one of the defendants and redirected to two other companies.

It stated that the borrower company was no longer operational and had ignored repeated repayment requests between May and October 2025.

The bank warned that there was a risk the defendants could hide or move assets, which could prevent recovery if the court later ruled in the bank’s favor.

After reviewing the application, Justice Aneke approved the bank’s requests and set the case for mention on April 9.