Borealis Foods Ghana Limited has filed a suit at the Commercial Division of the Accra High Court against Barclays Bank Limited to seek compensation for what the plaintiff argues was a case of misconduct on the part of the bank.
Per the suit dated 28 July, Borealis argued that the actions of the defendant resulted in a loss of contract worth over US$10,000,000.00 with OZKAYA GIDA SAN TIC. LTD. STI.
The plaintiff is, therefore, seeking damages for the loss of the contract as a result of the defendant’s misconduct. Borealis is also seeking for compensatory damages for the loss of the 40 per cent profit that the defendant would have received from the contract with OZKAYA GIDA SAN TIC. LTD.STI.
In addition, the plaintiff wants the court to pass a verdict instructing the defendants to pay for costs including legal fees and any other orders that the court may deem fit.
The plaintiff said it holds Ghana cedi and United States dollar accounts with the defendants.
The plaintiff averred that it was issued a First Atlantic Bank cheque with a face value of GHS200,000.00 by its client Carmensita Limited for goods supplied to it. On 9 November 2015, the plaintiff presented the First Atlantic Bank cheque with a face value of GHS200, 000.
The cheque was honoured and the defendant credited the plaintiff’s account number with GHS200,000 on the 10 November 2015.
Having credited its account on 10 November 2015, the defendant subsequently deducted the said GHS200,000.00 from the plaintiff’s account on 15 December 2015 without any reason and express consent to do so.
The plaintiff confronted the defendant on its “unlawful and unreasonable conduct” wherein the defendant refunded the said amount on 29 March 2016.
The plaintiff further claimed that it thereafter authorised the defendant to convert the said GHS200,000.00 to USD50,000.00 and to put the said USD 50,000.00 into its United States dollar account.
The writ explained that the plaintiff authorised the defendant to transfer the said USD50,000.00 to OZKAYA GIDA SAN TIC.LTD.STI, a company carrying out its business in the Republic of Turkey, with whom the plaintiff had a contract worth US$10,000,000.
The plaintiff said the USD50,000.00 was for part payment for goods supplied by OZKAYA GIDA SAN TIC.LTD.STI. The plaintiff averred that it was estimated to earn a profit of about 40 per cent on every consignment of food products supplied.
The plaintiff said the defendant presented it with a swift receipt on 7 April 2016, confirming that the said amount of USD50,000.00 had been paid to the receiving bank of OZKAYA GIDA SAN TIC.LTD.STI.
The plaintiff further averred that OZKAYA GIDA SAN TIC. LTD.STI, however, complained that they had not received the said USD50,000.00 even though the defendant had deducted transfer charges for the purported transaction.
After requesting for a statement of its accounts on 14 April 2016, the plaintiff said it realised that the defendant had returned the USD50,000.00 into its dollar account, converted the said USD50,000.00 into cedis and deposited the cedi equivalent back into the plaintiff’s Ghana cedi account.
The plaintiff said the “defendant again deducted the GHS200,000.00 from its Ghana cedi account and has failed, neglected, and refused to credit the plaintiff’s account”.
OZKAYA GIDA SAN TIC. LTD.STI, therefore, terminated its agreement with the plaintiff on account of the defendant’s failure to effect the fund transfer, causing the plaintiff to lose money worth millions of dollars, the writ further indicated.
Borealis Foods is, therefore, accusing Barclays Bank Limited of breaching its duty to abide by their mandate to transfer funds to OZKAYA GIDA SAN TIC. LTD.STI. leading to business losses for which Barclays must pay.
Source: Ghana/AccraFM.com
