Delegates walk past the MTN logo at the Investing in African Mining Indaba 2024 conference in Cape Town, South Africa February 7, 2024.
Image: REUTERS/Esa Alexander/File Photo
A Cameroon appeals court has ordered the release of South African mobile operator MTN's bank accounts in the country, which were seized in 2022 over a loan dispute with a Cameroonian businessman, MTN said.
A court order froze MTN Group's Cameroon accounts containing 14 billion CFA francs ($23.20 million) in September 2022.
The seizure threatened the operations of the Cameroon subsidiary of Africa's largest mobile carrier, which has one of the biggest networks in the Central African country with around 15 million users.
The dispute over a real estate loan involves Cameroonian business mogul Ahmadou Baba Danpullo, the owner of Bestinver Group companies, and South Africa's First National Bank (FNB).
After FNB liquidated a number of properties belonging to Danpullo in South Africa, the businessman retaliated by having a Cameroonian court freeze the accounts of South African companies including MTN.
In 2023 MTN Cameroon said its funds were to be transferred into an escrow account managed by the court registrar as part of a third party debt, or "garnishee", order related to the dispute.
MTN appealed and a court ruled on February 24 that the Bestinver Group companies were not entitled to impose these seizures, the operator said in a statement dated March 31.
"MTN Cameroon welcomes this decision, affirming the legitimacy of its defence and restoring its rights," the company said in the statement, seen by Reuters on Wednesday.
One of Danpullo's lawyers, Mbanzehe Aggee, said he would make a new attempt to seize the assets."We are following legal procedures to obtain an enforcement order," he said.
MTN Cameroon has faced legal and regulatory challenges in recent years, reflecting broader tensions between multinational firms and local political and business interests.
REUTERS