FHT Mega Express Limited, a Lagos-based equipment, machinery, and logistics firm, has sued Parallex Bank Limited at the Lagos State High Court, Tafawa Balewa Square, over an alleged failure to release shipping documents for imported goods worth €7,310,257.99 despite receiving 100% full payment of N7,154,677,000 to establish the applicable letters of credit since 2023.
The company is seeking a court order to freeze N7.15 billion in the bank’s accounts across Nigeria in interest-yielding instruments pending the substantive suit.Through its counsel, Adedayo Oshodi (SAN), FHT filed a motion ex parte marked ID/AOR/6143/2025 on October 17, 2025.
In a 41-paragraph affidavit deposed to by General Manager Ezekiel Olumi, the company stated it had no prior relationship with Parallex Bank, was never a credit customer and never took any loan.
The arrangement, which began in June 2023, was strictly non-borrowing and meant solely for creating letters of credit to pay European suppliers.
Parallex Bank issued an Indicative Offer of Banking Facilities on June 7, 2023, requiring full naira deposits equivalent to the euro values.
FHT opened a current account on July 27, 2023, and between July 2023 and February 2024 deposited N7,154,677,000 to fund four LCs tied to Form M numbers: MF20230085253 (€4,750,609.00), MF20230122580 (€839,648.99), MF20230125197 (€502,485.00), and MF20230132545 (€1,720,000.00).The consignments, totaling 30 containers of heavy machinery, arrived between February 2024 and February 2025.
The bank released documents, including bills of lading, for only one consignment worth €502,485.00 (N434,408,834.68).
Documents for the remaining 29 containers were seized without any reasonable justification by the bank. On December 10 and 12, 2024, FHT demanded the release of the documents, but Parallex instead asked for an additional N3,759,024,395.45 to cover exchange rate differentials. The request the FHT turned down as Parallex has no reason to do so as it ought to have proceeded to buy the foreign exchange as soon as FHT account was founded but instead the bank chose to trade with the FHT money without paying interest on it and yet turned around to ask FHT to pay differential when the neglect and failure to act on time which resulted to increase in exchange rete is entirely that of Parallex Bank.
Due to the bills of lading that was withheld and the consignment having overstayed at the Ports, Nigeria Customs Service got a court order from The Federal High court to condemned and auction the uncleared overtime goods.
When the matter came up on Thursday before Justice Abdul-Raheem Muyideen, Oshodi (SAN) urged the court to grant the freezing order to preserve the funds, stressing directed that the motion be served on Parallex Bank, and adjourned to Monday, November 18, 2025, for the motion on notice.As of November 14, 2025, Parallex Bank, which upgraded from microfinance to commercial banking status in 2021, has not responded publicly to the allegations.
The case underscores growing tensions over letters of credit amid Nigeria’s persistent foreign exchange volatility, with the naira falling from about N460/€ in mid-2023 to over N1,600/€ by late 2025.
FHT Mega Express insists it fulfilled all obligations and seeks justice to recover its funds and address losses from the auctioned consignments.
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