Zeepay sues MTN Ghana for GH¢15 million

Zeepay Ghana Limited and its Managing Director, Andrew Takyi-Appiah, are demanding GH¢15 million in damages from MTN Ghana and Mobile Money Fintech Limited over an alleged failure to correct the registration of a corporate mobile money wallet in the CEO’s name.

The lawsuit, filed at the High Court in Accra on October 23, 2026, centres on an MTN Mobile Money corporate wallet that Zeepay claims was registered in Takyi-Appiah’s name instead of the company’s, despite requests dating back to November 2023.

The plaintiffs have accused Scancom PLC, operator of MTN Ghana, and Mobile Money Fintech Limited (MMFL) of breaching their contractual obligations by allegedly failing to correct the registration despite repeated reminders.

According to the statement of claim, Zeepay subscribed to an MTN corporate wallet, known as an OVA wallet, around 2022 or 2023 to support its business operations.

The company says the know-your-customer (KYC) documents submitted during registration were in Zeepay’s name, but it later discovered that the wallet’s ownership records bore the name of its managing director.

Zeepay subsequently wrote to MTN Ghana and MMFL on November 21, 2023, requesting that the wallet be registered in the company’s name. The plaintiffs maintain that they provided the necessary supporting documents but the alleged anomaly remained unresolved despite further reminders up to August 2026.

The plaintiffs also dispute the defendants’ reported justification for associating Takyi-Appiah’s name with the wallet on the grounds that he was its handler. They argue that being designated as a wallet handler does not automatically make someone its owner.

GH¢15m compensation demand

Takyi-Appiah is seeking GH¢10 million in general damages and GH¢5 million in exemplary damages, while Zeepay is claiming unspecified general damages for the alleged breach of contract.

The managing director argues that the disputed registration has caused him pain, distress and reputational harm, particularly because his name has become entangled in legal proceedings involving the fintech company.

The plaintiffs contend that the continued association of his name with the wallet has contributed to his being named personally in litigation against Zeepay.

They are asking the court to declare the registration wrongful and unlawful, find that the defendants breached their obligations to Zeepay, and order them to remove Takyi-Appiah’s name from the wallet’s ownership records.

They are also seeking legal costs and any further relief the court considers appropriate.

The claims are allegations contained in the new lawsuit and have not yet been established by a court.

Lawsuit follows multimillion-dollar judgment against Zeepay

The legal action comes months after the High Court’s Commercial Division in Accra ordered Zeepay and Takyi-Appiah to pay substantial sums to businessman Michael Yusuf over failed fund transfers.

In a ruling delivered on April 16, 2026, Justice Afi Agbanu Kudomor granted summary judgment in Yusuf’s favour after finding that the defendants had failed to raise a reasonable defence to his claim.

The court ordered them to jointly pay US$11,585,753, €8,500 and GH¢1.4 million, together with interest from the date of judgment until final payment. It also awarded GH¢500,000 in legal costs.

The dispute arose from funds Yusuf had deposited with Zeepay for onward transfers to designated beneficiaries. According to the court ruling, several transactions remained incomplete, leaving substantial sums outstanding.

The judgment also addressed Takyi-Appiah’s attempt to have himself removed from the proceedings. The court considered him a proper party to the case in light of evidence that a substantial portion of the disputed funds had been paid into his personal mobile money account.

The earlier judgment is separate from the new action against MTN Ghana and MMFL, which concerns the alleged registration of Zeepay’s corporate wallet in the managing director’s name.

Bank of Ghana revokes Zeepay’s licence

Zeepay is also facing regulatory challenges. On July 14, 2026, the Bank of Ghana revoked the company’s Dedicated Electronic Money Issuer (DEMI) licence under Section 13 of the Payment Systems and Services Act, 2019 (Act 987).

The central bank cited breaches including the issuance of electronic money without equivalent funds in a bank account, the commingling of accounts backing electronic money and collections with other operational accounts, and foreign exchange dealings without a Bank of Ghana licence.

The regulator said Zeepay’s failure to comply with its directives demonstrated a pattern of unsafe and unsound business practices that threatened the interests of users and providers of payment systems.

The revocation is a regulatory action distinct from the civil judgment in Yusuf’s case and the latest lawsuit against MTN Ghana and MMFL.

The new case will require the court to consider whether the defendants acted wrongfully in registering the corporate wallet in Takyi-Appiah’s name and whether their alleged failure to correct the records entitles the plaintiffs to damages.

For now, the GH¢15 million claim remains a demand for compensation, not a court-awarded sum.

EA