Femi Otedola Accuses Jim Ovia Of Fraudulent Transactions In Zenith Bank Account

The conflict between billionaire businessman Femi Otedola and Jim Ovia, chairman of Zenith Bank, over an alleged multibillion naira fraud has escalated.

According to TheCable, Otedola accused Zenith Bank of using his company Seaforce Shipping Limited’s account for trading in 2011 without his knowledge or consent.

These allegations are currently being investigated by the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID) of the police, though efforts are being made to resolve the issue amicably.

Jim Ovia and Zenith Bank are yet to comment on the allegations.

Femi Otedola claimed that although Seaforce Shipping’s account had not been used since 2010, it was still being used for trading without his knowledge.

He stated that Seaforce never applied for or received a loan from Zenith Bank, yet unauthorized trading involving billions of naira occurred on the account.

When asked to provide documentation, including offer letters for the supposed loans, Zenith Bank reportedly failed to do so.

Otedola discovered the suspicious activities recently, 13 years after the transactions, following a tip off by a whistleblower within Zenith bank.

When Otedola confronted Zenith Bank’s officials, it was learnt that they apologized.

He produced a letter from March 19, 2018, where Zenith Bank informed Seaforce’s auditors of a debt of N2,278,420.

This was in stark contrast to the N5 billion recorded in the bank statement seen by TheCable.

On the day the letter was written, the bank statement showed a debt of N2.9 billion, compared to the N2 million stated in the letter signed by Taofik Bashir (internal audit control) and Edwin Kind Olie (group head, telecom).

Transactions totaling over N16 billion were recorded against Seaforce’s account from 2011 to 2024.

Otedola questioned who made the payments to reduce the debt from N16.9 billion to N11 billion, as he was unaware of these transactions.

Several large credits were recorded on the account in 2011, including N77 million on April 18, N119 million on December 1, N316 million on December 8, N266 million on December 15, and N444 million on December 12.

As a result these transactions, Seaforce now has a debt of N5.9 billion, mostly due to interest charges.

A senior official of Zenith Bank has already been questioned by the police.

Meanwhile, Otedola’s companies—Zenon, Seaforce, Luzon Oil and Gas, and Garment Care Limited—have secured a federal high court injunction against Zenith Bank, Quantum Zenith Securities and Investment, Veritas Registrar, and Central Securities Clearing System.

This injunction restrains these entities from trading shares or paying dividends until the hearing of the motion on notice for interlocutory injunction.

KanyiDaily recalls that Femi Otedola recently sold his stake in the Transnational Corporation of Nigeria (Transcorp) to UBA Chairman, Tony Elumelu, who he accused of betrayal.