ECOBANK GH. LTD vs. CONFIDENCE LINE LTD. & 2 ORS [2001]DLCA6989

Date	2001-01-25
Suit No.	CIVIL APPEAL NO. 174/99
Citation No.	[2001]DLCA6989

BENIN J.A. (PRESIDING)

ANSAH J.A.

GBADEGBE J.A.

ADUAMA OSEI FOR PLAINTIFF/APP/RESPONDENT

FELIX NTRAKWAH FOR DEFENDANT/RESPONDENT/APPELLANT.

<p class="mb-5" id="contentDlCitation"  hidden>[2001]DLCA6989</p>
																																						<div class="restriction-wrapper">
														<div class="container-lg">
															<div class="row">
																<div class="col-md-12 restricted-content">
																	<div class="restricted-content-img-wrapper">
																		<div class="lock-icon bounce-7">
																			<img class=""
																				src="https://www.dennislawgh.com/dl-assets/dl-images/lock-content.png"
																				alt="Subscription based content">
																		</div>
																	</div>
																	 
																		<a href="https://www.dennislawgh.com/login"
																		class="btn btn-primary btn-lg"
																		style="font-family: 'open sans'; text-transform: capitalize;  border-radius: 8px"> 
																		Login to Read Full Case </a>
																	 
																	
																</div>
															</div>
														</div>
													</div>
													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" ><span style="font-size: 18px !important;"><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center;line-height:115%"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;
color:#00B0F0">ECOBANK GH. LTD<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center;line-height:115%"><i><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;">(PLAINTIFF/APPELLANT)<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center;line-height:115%"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;
mso-fareast-font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;;
color:#00B0F0">vs.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center;line-height:115%"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;
mso-fareast-font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;;
color:#00B0F0">CONFIDENCE LINE LTD. &amp; 2 ORS<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:12.0pt;text-align:center;
line-height:115%"><i><span style="font-size:
10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:
&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;">(DEFENDANTS/RESPONDENT)<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:
115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;">[COURT OF APPEAL, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">

<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center;line-height:115%;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;">CIVIL
APPEAL NO. 174/99</span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;
font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;">&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; DATE: 25<sup>TH</sup> JANUARY,
2001<o:p></o:p></span></p>

</div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height:
115%"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;
line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;">COUNSEL: <o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height:
115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;">ADUAMA
OSEI FOR PLAINTIFF/APP/RESPONDENT<o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height:
115%;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in;
mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:
115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;">FELIX NTRAKWAH FOR
DEFENDANT/RESPONDENT/APPELLANT.<o:p></o:p></span></p>

</div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height:
115%"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;
line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:
&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;">CORAM:&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></b></p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height:
115%;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in;
mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:
115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;">BENIN J.A. (PRESIDING), ANSAH J.A.,
GBADEGBE J.A.<o:p></o:p></span></p>

</div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height:
115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></span></p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">

</div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify;line-height:115%"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;">BENIN,
J.A.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;
font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;">The plaintiff is a banking institution
incorporated in Ghana. The 1st defendant is a limited liability company
registered in Ghana to do business. The 2nd defendant is the Managing Director
of the 1st Defendant Company. The co-defendant is the central bank of Ghana.
Apart from the co-defendant all the other parties at the trial court are also
parties to this appeal. The plaintiff’s case at the trial court was very
simple: that the 1st defendant owed it some money arising from its account
which it operated with the bank. The facility which the plaintiff granted the
1st defendant and which had resulted in the indebtedness was guaranteed by the
2nd defendant, hence the reliefs sought against the defendants jointly and
severally. In their statement of defence, the defendants raised several queries
against the claims by the plaintiffs and went on to charge fraud against the
plaintiff, claiming, inter alia, that its account was manipulated by the bank.
Several issues were raised, testified to, argued and decided upon by the trial
court. But in this appeal, one transaction only appears to be in issue. It
concerns the transfer of the sum of FFR. 465,120 that the plaintiff transferred
to Lome, Togo, ostensibly to pay for a debt that the 1st defendant was said to
be owing a company in Togo. Indeed that transfer was only a part of larger sums
of money the plaintiff transferred to Togo to pay for 20,000 bags of sugar that
the company in Togo had imported for the 1st defendant. There appears to be no
quarrel with the transfer to pay for the present order; the problem relates to
the transfer to pay for the existing debt. These transfers were effected
through a bank in Lome called<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;
font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;">&nbsp;Ecobank, Lome, Togo, and were intended for the
company called ETS Confidence Line, Togo, to whom the 1st defendant was
indebted. It turned out that this particular transfer was subsequently ordered
by the co-defendant to be cancelled and the amount involved repatriated back to
Ghana, which order was duly carried out by the plaintiff. The issues arising
out of that transfer were: (i) whether or not it was effected with the
authorisation, apparent or implied, of the 1st defendant; (ii) whether the
transfer was regular within the relevant laws, rules and/or regulations of
banking practice in the country; (iii) whether the court below was justified in
reversing the interest charged by the plaintiff when the transfer was cancelled
and the sum involved repatriated back to the country. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;
font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;">At this stage let me briefly recount the
facts. The 1st defendant placed an order with Confidence Line, Togo, for the
supply of a quantity of sugar. The sugar was to be imported from a firm in
Europe and delivery was to take place through the port of Tema in Ghana. The
bankers of Confidence Line, Togo, through which payment was to be effected was
Ecobank, Togo. Before the sugar could be sent to Ghana, Ecobank Togo sent the
shipping documents covering this transaction to the plaintiff. And this
singular act, according to the defendants, compelled them (the defendants) to
deal with the plaintiff instead of the Judgments of the Superior Courts 8212
Copyright © DataCenta Ltd. defendants’ own bankers, the Social Security Bank
Ltd. in Ghana. It appears the defendants did not have funds to pay for the
supply, so they entered into a credit arrangement with the plaintiff for an
amount of some ¢200,000,000.00 which the plaintiff advanced to the 1st
defendant with guarantee from the 2nd defendant. It is necessary to recount the
events culminating in this advance and the speed at which it was done. On 20th
June, 1990, the 1st defendant opened a corporate current account with the
plaintiff, with an initial deposit of ¢200,000.00, as per Exhibit B. A day
after this, to be precise on 21st June, 1990, the 2nd defendant surrendered the
deed on his landed property to the plaintiff as security for any money the
plaintiff might advance to the 1st defendant. Sooner than later, this advance
was made to the 1st defendant on the 27th June, 1990. Indeed the terms of this
advance were contained in an offer letter by the plaintiff dated 27 June, 1990,
which was accepted by the 1st defendant that same day. The terms and conditions
of this offer letter which the defendants accepted provide a critical insight
into our consideration of the issue whether the transfer of funds from the 1st
defendant's account by the plaintiff was authorised by the former, as urged by
the plaintiff and found by the trial court. These are spelt out in Exhibit E.
for its full force and effect, I propose to set out Exhibit E. it provides:<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;
font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify;line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;
font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;">&nbsp;“Dear Mr. Ofei,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify;line-height</main>