The Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered the freezing of bank accounts linked to Petrocam Trading Nigeria Limited and its principal, Patrick Ilo, over an alleged debt of more than N9 billion owed to Zenith Bank Plc.
The order, issued by Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke on Wednesday, followed an ex parte application filed by the bank seeking to preserve funds allegedly owed by the company.
In the ruling delivered in Suit No: FHC/L/CS/393/2026, the court barred the defendants from withdrawing, transferring or dissipating funds up to N9,057,511,855.63 pending the hearing of a motion on notice.
The court held that the restriction was necessary to protect the disputed funds while the matter is being determined.
“An interim order is hereby granted restraining the defendants/respondents, whether by themselves, their agents, privies or assigns, from withdrawing, transferring, dissipating or otherwise dealing with any funds up to the sum of N9,057,511,855.63 pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice,” the court ruled.
Aneke further ordered the freezing of all accounts linked to Bank Verification Number (BVN) 22141926401, which the bank alleged is used by Ilo in operating accounts associated with Petrocam.
The judge directed all financial institutions within the court’s jurisdiction to immediately place a lien or “Post-No-Debit” restriction on any accounts connected to the BVN pending further orders of the court.
“All financial institutions within the jurisdiction of this honourable court are hereby directed to place a lien or post-no-debit restriction on all accounts linked to BVN 22141926401 pending further orders,” the court stated.
The directive also extended to operators within Nigeria’s electronic payment ecosystem.
Joined as respondents in the case are Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System, Interswitch Limited and Interswitch Financial Inclusion Services Limited.
Aneke ordered the institutions to disclose details of any accounts linked to the BVN and provide information on balances and transactions.
According to the court order, the institutions must file an affidavit of compliance within seven days showing all accounts connected to the BVN, the balances in those accounts and their transactional history for the previous six months.
Documents filed by Zenith Bank revealed that the dispute arose from a credit facility extended to Petrocam for petroleum import transactions.
The bank stated that the loan was subject to several pre-disbursement requirements which the company was expected to fulfil before accessing the funds.
Among the conditions were the formal acceptance of the facility through authorised signatories, submission of a board resolution approving the borrowing and disclosure of existing debts owed to other financial institutions.
The company was also required to provide details of facility limits, outstanding balances and collateral pledged to other lenders.
According to the court filings, Petrocam was further required to domicile proceeds from petroleum product sales and Sovereign Debt Note subsidy payments from Oando Plc and Total Nigeria Plc into its account with Zenith Bank.
Other requirements included the submission of contract agreements for the bank’s approval and the provision of a five per cent counterpart contribution for each transaction under the facility.
The agreement also required Petrocam to submit quarterly management accounts within 60 days after the end of each quarter and audited annual financial statements within 120 days.
Additionally, the company was mandated to route all import duty payments and Letters of Credit through its Zenith Bank account and establish Letters of Credit for petroleum imports.
The bank also required Petrocam to obtain comprehensive marine insurance for petroleum shipments, with Zenith Bank listed as the first loss payee.
Court filings further revealed that General Marine and Oil Services Ltd was appointed by the bank to monitor the warehousing of petroleum products under the facility, with the cost to be borne by Petrocam.
The facility agreement also included foreign exchange obligations, authorising Zenith Bank to settle maturing Usance obligations at an interest rate of 12 per cent if Petrocam failed to provide the required funds.
In addition, the bank stated that Petrocam agreed to bear all legal, recovery and ancillary costs arising from enforcement of the facility in the event of default.
Aneke also granted the bank permission to serve the defendants through substituted means.
The court ruled that the defendants could be served at their last known address in Victoria Island, Lagos.
The ex parte motion was argued by Chief A.A. Aribisala (SAN) on behalf of Zenith Bank.
The matter was adjourned to March 17, 2026, for mention
