Business News
Eko Hospital directors head back to court
The ten year tussle between EKO Hospital founders and Geoff Ohen, which was close to resolution has taken a new twist.
Investors in Eko Hospital hoping for a final resolution of the decade-long tussle between the founders of EKO hospital and Geoffrey Ohen may have to wait awhile.
In a notice sent to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), yesterday, the company disclosed that an Extra Ordinary General Meeting (EGM) scheduled for Thursday, July 5, 2018, has been postponed.
The postponement was due to an appeal filed by Geoff Ohen Limited against the judgment of a Federal High Court as well as a stay of execution of the same judgment.
At the meeting that has now been postponed, the following resolutions were to be approved.
- The conversion of debt owed the founders and Dr. G.A. Cole into equity.
- The allotment of 110,000,000 (one hundred and ten million) ordinary shares to Geoff Ohen Limited via a Special Placement scheme as approved at the Completion Board meeting of 17th June 2008.
Nairametrics had prior to this, covered the tussle in a corporate story series.
The debt owed the trio of Sunday Kuku, Augustine Obiora, and Alexander Eneli arose as a result of salary and emolument arrears when the hospital had financial challenges. 25 percent of the outstanding was to be paid in cash, and the rest converted to equity.
In a bid to raise capital as well as defray this debt, the company offered Geoff Ohen Limited 110 million units at N4 a share. The firm is an investment vehicle through which Geoff Ohen, a director maintains his holdings.
Ohen, however, reneged on the deal having acquired shares owned by GTBank and Secure Swaps. He accused the founders of mismanaging the hospital, and as such should not benefit from the swap arrangement. He also stated that the debt was not included in the investment prospectus he was given.
Regarding the stealth acquisition of the shares, he maintained he was under no obligation to inform the directors, as the transaction was recorded by the company’s registrars.
The tussle between the board members has taken a toll on the hospital’s operations. It recently had to write off close to a billion Naira of bad debt.
About EKO Hospital
Ekocorp Plc started off as Mercy Specialist Hospital in 1977 and was incorporated on the 9th of February 1982 as a private limited company by shares. It became a Public Liability Company (Plc) in 1991 and by 1994, the name changed to Ekocorp Plc.
The EKO represents the first letter of the surname of each of the 3 founders Eneli, Kuku, and Obiora.
Appointments
Standard Bank Group appoints Yinka Sanni as new Chief Executive of Africa Regions
Yinka Sanni has been appointed as Standard Bank Group’s Chief Executive of Africa Regions.
Corporate Press Releases
P2P crypto marketplace, Bitzlato (BZ) partners with Lemonade Finance to ease money transfers across Africa
The partnership will enable users on the BZ platform to buy and sell bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies on the marketplace at zero cost.
Bitzlato (BZ), the latest P2P Crypto Exchange to enter the African market, has added Lemonade.Finance, a borderless payment platform for Africa, as a payment method to its platform.
Lemonade Finance provides 100% digital payment experience for Africans to seamlessly participate in the global economy from anywhere in the world without any hassle or regardless of where they are from.
The partnership will enable users on the BZ platform to buy and sell bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies on the marketplace at zero cost.
Users in Nigeria will now be able to send Nigerian Naira (NGN) to MPESA at 0% transaction fee.
Speaking about this partnership, Ridwan Olarere, CEO, Lemonade Finance, said:
“We are excited to partner with such an innovative company like Bitzlato to connect more Africans through payment. Many Africans living on the continent face many difficulties when making payments as remittance companies charge high fees and are time-consuming. We are now providing our users with a cost-effective way of sending money to Ghana, Kenya, Uk and Europe.”
Commenting on the opportunities this provides to crypto traders on the BZ platform, Mike Lunov, CEO, BZ, said:
“This partnership will provide a much-needed gateway that enables the markets we serve to seamlessly interact with each other in a borderless and open environment. We seek to break the barriers that presently exist for cross border transfers and enable our users to generate value through the opportunities that accrue from cryptocurrencies trading. The innovation exhibited by the Lemonade platform, and the brilliance of its team assures users of top-notch, secure and reliable transfers going forward.”
According to BZ, during the first month, BZ will refund commissions in manual mode while using Lemonade Finance, but this will be automated at the end of this period.
Following this partnership, BZ is now looking to partner with merchants in the crypto space especially in Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa that have a steady flow of Nigerian Naira (NGN) to increase liquidity on the platform.
Take advantage of the new Lemonade Finance payment method on BZ, which offers zero transactional fees for money transfers from Nigeria into Kenya. Sign up on BZ and start trading crypto easily today.
