Momo Payment Service Bank Limited (Momo PSB), the fintech subsidiary of MTN Nigeria, has dragged 18 commercial banks to court to retrieve N22.3 billion “erroneously transferred to 8,000 bank customers”.
The affected banks, listed as defendants in the suit, are Access Bank, Ecobank, Fidelity Bank, First Bank, First City Monument Bank, Guaranty Trust Bank, Heritage Bank, Polaris Bank and Providus Bank.
Others include StanbicIBTC, Standard Chartered, Sterling Bank, Suntrust Bank, Union Bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA), Unity Bank, Wema Bank and Zenith Bank.
The company said the erroneous transfers were due to “system exploitation”.
According to reports, MoMo PSB experienced a major security breach barely a week after commencing operations, resulting in a N22 billion loss.
In a suit marked FHC/L/CS/960/2022 and filed on May 30, 2022, the PSB asked the court to declare that the deposits worth N22.3 billion belonged to it (Momo PSB) and not the banks’ customers.
The request formed part of the reliefs sought in the suit filed by Lotanna Okoli, a senior advocate of Nigeria, on behalf of MoMo PSB.
In an originating summons dated 30 May 2022 and filed before a Federal High Court, MTN’s MOMO payment Bank is seeking court declaration that the money transferred in error belongs to it and not the customers of the banks.
The requests formed part of the reliefs sought in the suit filed by a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Chief Lotanna Chuka Okoli (SAN) on behalf of Momo Payment Service Bank Limited.
Among other reliefs, the MTN bank is also seeking an order of the court directing the 18 banks to individually account for the sums available in their customer accounts and the sums which have been removed by the customers and are no longer available.
In the affidavit in support of the originating summons, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), MOMO PSB Ltd, Mr. Anthony Usoro Usoro claimed that MOMO PSB Ltd is the bona fide owner of the aggregate sum of N22.3B which is maintained in its MOMO settlement account.
