Seplat co-founder ABC Orjiako faces $220 million judgment in BVI court

Nigerian businessman ABC Orjiako, co-founder and former chairman of Seplat Energy, faces a judgment of more than $220 million after Access Bank won summary relief in the British Virgin Islands against him, his wife and eight related BVI companies. Justice Mithani issued the order on Oct. 1, saying the evidence was strong enough to decide the case without a trial and calling the defenses fanciful.

The dispute traces back to a 2013 syndicated loan of over $200 million to Shebah Exploration & Petroleum Co. (SEPCOL), an Orjiako-linked vehicle. Access Bank, a successor to part of the lending group, pursued enforcement in the BVI to target assets it says are beneficially owned by Orjiako. The ruling adds to the lender’s toolkit as it seeks recovery and raises the prospect of further actions to attach assets connected to the borrower group. After default, the lenders pursued guarantees and judgments in England and Nigeria. Access Bank, successor to one of the original lenders, turned to the BVI to enforce and target assets it said were beneficially owned by Orjiako.

The court examined a web of BVI entities that held interests connected to Shebah and, historically, to Seplat shareholdings. Between 2014 and 2017, after default had crystallised, ownership of several companies moved to Orjiako’s spouse, Igra. The judge found the transfers lacked commercial rationale, amounted to sham arrangements and were undertaken with intent to put assets beyond creditor reach. Natural love and affection, he held, is not “valuable or good consideration” under BVI fraudulent conveyance law.

The decision follows a sequence of worldwide freezing, disclosure and receivership orders that let Access trace and lock down assets pending judgment. It also clarifies that BVI courts will grant summary judgment in fraud matters where the defence is little more than bare denial — a point likely to reverberate across cross-border recovery work.

Seplat is not a party to the proceedings and has previously stated that creditor actions against its former chairman do not make the company a judgment debtor nor impair operations. Still, the outcome raises practical questions for any custodians or registrars that may hold relevant securities, and for counterparties transacting with offshore vehicles tied to founders of listed African issuers.

Orjiako now faces enforcement steps and the prospect of an appeal. The creditors in the meantime have leverage in chasing assets held through family and nominee structures.