United Bank for Africa has secured a Federal High Court victory in its long-running dispute with Stallion Group over money the lender says it is owed. Justice Daniel Osiagor of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, ruled in UBA's favour on all counts, according to the court judgement. The decision upheld the bank's receiver and mortgage security, and confirmed the liability of the guarantors in the case.
The court appointed Romeo Michael as receiver-manager, granting him the right to take possession of the mortgaged property and to seek protective orders. It also barred the defendants from diverting payments owed to them by government agencies, strengthening UBA's position to recover its money. The court rejected objections from Barbedos Ventures Limited, the 12th defendant, holding that it had failed to establish any legal claim over the mortgaged property.
The underlying case began when Justice Akintayo Aluko granted UBA orders to take control of assets belonging to Stallion Nigeria Ltd and its affiliates in Lagos, Port Harcourt and Kano, and to freeze their funds across Nigerian banks. Stallion's attempts to have those orders lifted failed in December 2023. The defendants include Von Automobile Nigeria, Stallion Motors, The Honda Place and director Sunil Vaswani.
The ruling carries broader implications for how Nigerian courts enforce creditor rights and the legal standing of security arrangements and appointed receivers.