Huhuonline.com can authoritatively report that the management of Bank PHB has dragged M.R.S Holdings limited to court over non- payment of Fifty eight million dollars ($58M) loan it granted to the company to purchase Chevron Texaco in 2008. MRS is owned by Sayyu Dantata and his uncle, Aliko Dangote has 25 percent interest.

According to court documents, with reference number ID/1336/10, which was filed at the Ikeja High Court, BankPHB averred that in 2008 when Chevron Texaco a multinational petroleum exploration and marketing company decided to shed off its marketing operation business in Nigeria, Togo, Benin Republic, Cameroun, Congo and Cote d’ Ivoire. However, after the verification of the value of the business, the price was fixed at USD 792M. ..

Due to the huge financial commitment involved in the acquisition of the business interests of Chevron Texaco in the aforementioned countries, Sayyu Dantata`s M.R.S Holdings approached the bank for credit facilities, in the sum of $50,000,000.00(fifty million dollars)

The bank avers that after it considered M.R.S`s proposals, it found it viable and was willing to support it, but made it clear to them that the financial outlay is not what it can provide alone, and impressed it on the company to ensure that a consortium of financial institutions be convinced to support them in the acquisition bid. ...

Consequently, a consortium of banks agreed to provide credit facilities to MRS. The banks include Fidelity Bank, First City Monument Bank, Intercontinental Bank, Oceanic Bank, Bank PHB, Union Bank and Zenith. Our checks reveal that at some point, Intercontinental, Oceanic and Zenith Bank opted out of the transactions, thus Ecobank was admitted to join the consortium of creditors.

Pursuant to the customer and bank relationships, the bank granted the facility of $50m as requested by Sayyu Dantata, after reaching an agreement with other creditors on the terms and conditions for making the credit facility available which were reduced into writing and codified in two documents namely; “the bridge facility agreement’ and ‘the supplement facility agreement’, availed to him in the sum of USD 50m for a period 360 days ,i.e. one year but Sayyu Dantata and his company took the benefit of the facility granted them by the bank and acquired the business interest of Chevron/Texaco but when the repayment plan expired Sayyu failed to live up to his obligations to pay back the money now running to USD58,242,411.64(fifty eight million, two hundred and forty two thousand, four hundred and eleven United States dollars, fifty four cent).

In addition, Bank PHB has obtained an order of Mareva injunction restraining all commercial banks in Nigeria from releasing or dealing in any manner whatsoever with any and all monies and/or whatsoever due to Sayyu Dantata and his companies from any account whatsoever, maintained by him, his agents, privies, subsidiaries, sister companies or the like with any commercial banks wherever situated up to the amount of the bank claim of the sum of US$58,242,411.64 or its naira equivalent at the prevailing Central Bank of Nigeria exchange rate being the close debit balance outstanding on his account with BankPHB as at 31st August,2010 in respect of the credit facility granted to his companies and guaranteed by him .

Aside from Bank PHB, Sayyu Dantata and Aliko Dangote and their companies owes Union Bank $300m,FCMB $90m,Ecobank $50m,Fidelity Bank $50m and another $100m from the consortiums of all these banks who are also set to move in to claim the huge amount of money loaned to them

However, in order not to pay back the loan, Sayyu was alleged to have contacted the new Managing Director of Bank PHB and other bank managing directors of the affected banks to allegedly grease their palms so they can do some “financial abracadabra” to write off the loan. This move, huhuonline.com gathered was rebuffed by the bank chiefs for fear of the Sanusi Lamido-led Central Bank of Nigeria which has been monitoring all the transactions of all the financial institutions with keen interest.

The question many people are asking is what they have done with the huge amount of money that if converted to naira is about N145b.Gathered that rather than use the money judiciously, it is alleged that they spent it on vanity buying posh cars, private jets, and expensive ponies and womanizing .Sayyu we learnt recently completed a massive mansion in Banana Island a new site for the upper class in Lagos State and also own a private jet.

Aside these, Sayyu who is also a polo freak spends fortune on his horses, which he uses to play the game and they are mostly of expensive Arabian and Argentine pedigree with each cost about US$10,000 and maintaining them is equally as expensive.

He is also alleged to spend mind-bugging fortune on his mistresses and one of them is allegedly to be Amina Maina, who doubles as a director in the company and to say that she is stupendously rich will be an understatement. She has houses both in Lagos, Abuja and London with assorted luxury vehicles and vintage cars. .

It is not only Sayyu’s M.R.S that is struggling to survive, another of his company Ovlas Trading based in Monaco, France which he owns with one of his friends Patrice Albertis is equally suffering the same fate.

It has been alleged that the company owes several banks across the globe and was recently liquidated. Like M.R.S, most of Ovla’s profits were used to acquire personal properties aside from lavishing it on women and throwing expensive parties in France.

Right now, Aliko Dangote is doing everything possible to distance himself from the trouble of Sayyu. Aliko Dangote claims ignorant of the huge loan collected by the company where he is a director and also guaranteed $100m loan though this is not the first time that Aliko would distance himself from his brothers at trying and difficult moments.

An example was when the Central Bank rolled out the names of influential and wealthy Nigerians who owed banks last year, Dangote quickly came out that CBN didn’t mention his own name but that of Ali Dangote who is his nephew and according to him then he claimed “it is important to note that Ali Dangote is different from Aliko Dangote, Ali Dangote is incidentally, the son of Sani Dangote.
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