Fidelity Bank has applied for interpretation of a Supreme Court judgment regarding a legacy transaction between the defunct FSB International Bank and Sagecom Concepts Limited, while condemning recent publications alleging the bank faces bankruptcy.

According to a statement released on Monday by Meksley Nwagboh, Fidelity Bank's Head of Brand & Communications, the bank described recent publications about the Supreme Court judgment and claims of imminent bankruptcy as malicious and made in bad faith.

The case stems from a 2002 credit facility of USD3 million granted by FSB International Bank to G. Cappa Plc, secured with a mortgage on an Ikoyi property. When G. Cappa defaulted on the loan repayment, it filed a lawsuit against FSB at the Federal High Court in Lagos to prevent the bank from selling the mortgaged property.

"The Federal High Court, in its judgment, ruled that the Bank as legal mortgagor rightfully sold the leased interest in the property to Sagecom in 2011," the statement explained. However, the court declined to order vacant possession of the property and directed this issue to the Lagos State High Court, while G. Cappa remained in possession and continued collecting rent.

Sagecom subsequently instituted an action against both the Bank and G. Cappa at the Lagos State High Court in 2011, seeking damages for breach of contract and possession of the property. In 2018, the Lagos High Court ruled in favor of Sagecom, a decision that was later challenged at the Supreme Court.

The bank stated that there are significant ambiguities in the judgment, making it difficult to calculate the actual financial liability. According to Fidelity Bank's computation based on the 2005 exchange rate when the incident occurred, the liability is about N14 billion.

"Even if the 2018 exchange rate supported by the Supreme Court is applied, the judgment debt will just be under N30.7 billion payable to G.Cappa plc with contribution from the Bank," the statement noted.

Fidelity Bank has applied to the court for clarification on the proper interpretation of the judgment and computation of the actual amount payable. The court has ordered Sagecom to maintain status quo pending determination of pending motions and restrained Sagecom and all persons from publishing any material in the media as the matter remains in court.

Nwagboh emphasized that Fidelity Bank "remains a very strong and profitable financial institution and currently amongst the most capitalized banks in Nigeria with international operations." He assured depositors, customers, investors, and the general public of the bank's strong financial position, referencing the Q1 2025 financial results that have already been made public.

The bank also stated that it is taking all necessary steps to "apprehend and prosecute any persons or platform directly or indirectly responsible for this wicked, malicious and sponsored publication aimed at embarrassing the Bank and causing panic to its stakeholders."

This development comes as Fidelity Bank recently reported a 167.8% growth in Profit Before Tax to N105.8 billion in Q1 2025, demonstrating its continued strong performance in the Nigerian banking sector.