Thursday, June 4, 2026

The Sun Nigeria

Court restrains CBN on Keystone Bank acquisition

court

By Chinelo Obogo

The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has restrained the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefelie, and the management of Keystone bank from the transfer of  Keystone Bank shares to those it was purportedly sold to pending the determination of the motion on notice at the Court of Appeal.

 The decision was taken after the court heard the counsel to the plaintiff, Wole Balogun, address the court on the failure of the governor of the CBN to obey the court order and the counsel to the defendants, Samuel Onah, point out that there is already an order of stay of proceedings.

 The court asked the CBN governor to explain why he should not be committed to prison for contempt of court on account of the supervisory and regulatory power of the CBN regarding the purported sale of Keystone bank to Sigma Golf Nig Ltd and River Bank Consortium.

This, according to the court, presided over by Honourable Justice Valentine Achi, was after due notice of a pending order of the court, mandating all parties to maintain the status quo on the one hand and the CBN governor to mediate in the dispute and report back to the court on the other hand.

The case was adjourned for ruling till June 19.