Akinyanmi, ex-Lekoil CEO sues company, claims hostile takeover
Lekan Akinyanmi, the erstwhile CEO of Aim-listed Lekoil Plc, removed over accusation of governance breach has sued his former company saying it is planning to take over the Nigerian unit of the company he still heads.
Akinyanmi, who heads Lekoil Nigeria now operating independently of Lekoil Plc (registered in Cayman Island, and who provided financing for Lekoil Nigeria) through his attorney, Proskauer Rose LLP, sued Lekoil Cayman, for unlawful and hostile takeover of the company.
This brings a new twist to the lingering shareholder dispute that has seen Metallon, the South African majority shareholder of Lekoil Cayman, sell off its share in the company a few weeks ago precipitating a 41 percent crash in the company’s shares.
Meanwhile, Lekoil Cayman is suing Akinyanmi to recover loans it said he took from the company.
In a note to investors on September 10, Lekoil Cayman said, “Pursuant to the loan agreement between the Company and Mr. Olalekan Akinyanmi (as previously disclosed to the market), Akinyanmi was due to repay US$394,581 on 9 September 2021.
Read also: Lekoil Ltd shares tumbles as main shareholder Metallon pulls out
“The Company notes that it has not received the repayment due and that it has commenced legal proceedings to recover the amounts due and owing to the Company,” the company said.
It is not yet clear who Metallon sold its 23 million shares to and has not disclosed it fueling suspicion that share conversion rules on the exchange may have been flouted.
Sources inside the company say some concerned Lekoil shareholders have already protested the transaction, as the AIM rules stipulate that such volume of shares should be offered to the investing public.
Lekoil Nigeria is filing a formal petition to the Alternative Investment Market (AIM), a sub-market of the London Stock Exchange, especially as Lekoil (Cayman) Ltd is seeking to raise a convertible facility agreement (CFA) worth £200,000 from Hadron Master Fund and TDR enterprises to fund its legal battle against Lekoil Nigeria.