Union Bank of Nigeria Plc has filed committal proceedings before the Federal High Court in Lagos against six senior executives of OPay Digital Services Limited over alleged disobedience to subsisting court orders.
The application, brought under a Form 49 (Notice to Show Cause Why an Order of Committal Should Not Be Made), lists Gotring Dauda Wutrika, Wang Dan, Wen Mingxuan, Duyao Huang Simon, Ozoemena Chijioke, and Abass Rashidat Motunrayo—directors of the company—as alleged contemnors in Suit No. FHC/L/CS/629/2025.
The motion is filed pursuant to Section 72 of the Sheriffs and Civil Process Act, 1990, and Order IX Rule 13 of the Judgment Enforcement Procedure Rules.
Union Bank is asking the court to commit the named executives to a correctional centre for what it describes as their “wilful, deliberate and orchestrated disobedience” of court orders made on March 26, 2025, and April 15, 2025.
Specifically, the bank is seeking an order committing the alleged contemnors to custody until they purge themselves of the contempt.
According to the application, the court had earlier issued preservatory and disclosure orders directing the respondents, including OPay, to place a Post-No-Debit restriction on accounts linked to allegedly wrongful transfers from Union Bank’s account and to disclose recovered funds through an affidavit of compliance.
Union Bank contends that despite being duly served with the orders, OPay failed to comply. The bank further states that the court, in its judgment of April 15, 2025, ordered the immediate reversal of all recovered funds to the applicant.
The applicant alleges that OPay not only failed to reverse the funds but also refused to disclose details of accounts linked to the transactions, despite follow-up communications and notice of impending contempt proceedings.
It further claims that the cited executives, as principal officers of the company, are responsible for the alleged non-compliance and have, through their actions or inactions, frustrated enforcement of the court’s directives.
Industry observers say the case highlights ongoing concerns about compliance with court orders within Nigeria’s fast-growing digital payments sector.
They note that the proceedings could reinforce the binding nature of judicial orders and test regulatory oversight by the Central Bank of Nigeria, particularly in ensuring prompt enforcement of reversal directives to curb fraud and protect financial system integrity
