𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐭 𝐔𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐬 𝐒𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐧 ₦98.5 𝐁𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐏𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐩𝐮𝐭𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐯𝐨𝐥𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐁𝐍, 𝐍𝐈𝐁𝐒𝐒 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐄𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐞 𝐋𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬

Justice Deinde Dipeolu of the Federal High Court, Lagos, has encouraged parties in a ₦98.5 billion patent infringement lawsuit involving Enterprise Logistics Speciale Limited, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System Plc (NIBSS), Avanage Nigeria Limited, and the Registrar of Patents and Designs to pursue an amicable settlement before the commencement of full trial.

The court declined to proceed with hearing the case after observing that three of the defendants which are; Avanage Nigeria Limited, the CBN, and the Registrar of Patents and Designs, were not represented during the proceedings. Justice Dipeolu consequently directed that hearing notices be served on the absent parties and urged all sides to engage in meaningful discussions that could lead to an out-of-court resolution.

The plaintiffs, Enterprise Logistics Speciale Limited and its Managing Director, Samuel Kolajo, are seeking approximately ₦98.5 billion in damages over allegations of patent infringement, breach of a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA), and financial losses allegedly resulting from the failure to deploy their proprietary cash management technology on Nigeria's national payment infrastructure.

According to the suit, the plaintiffs claim they developed and patented an innovative cash management solution before disclosing details of the technology to the defendants under confidentiality arrangements. They allege that the subsequent introduction of the Central Bank of Nigeria's Guidelines for the Registration and Operation of Bank Neutral Cash Hubs (BNCH) incorporated substantial elements of their patented technology without their consent or compensation.

The plaintiffs further contend that the apex bank commercialised their innovations while failing to safeguard their intellectual property rights as provided under the Patents and Designs Act. They are asking the court to affirm their exclusive ownership of the patented technologies, restrain the defendants from further use of the inventions without authorisation, compel NIBSS to integrate and activate the PillarSalt Cash Management Solution on the Nigeria Central Switch, and nullify the BNCH Guidelines, which they argue unlawfully replicate their patented processes.

Their financial claims include ₦500 million as general damages for alleged patent infringement, ₦200 million against NIBSS for the alleged breach of the 2015 Non-Disclosure Agreement, and approximately ₦97.8 billion for losses allegedly incurred following NIBSS's refusal to integrate and activate the PillarSalt solution since December 2016.

However, in its amended statement of defence, NIBSS denied all allegations, maintaining that it neither infringed the plaintiffs' patents nor violated any confidentiality agreement. The organisation argued that it did not reject the integration of the plaintiffs' technology but opposed granting exclusive access that would prevent other qualified operators from utilising the national payment infrastructure.

NIBSS further submitted that granting such exclusivity would amount to an unlawful restraint of trade and create a monopoly contrary to regulatory principles governing Nigeria's payment ecosystem. It also maintained that decisions relating to technology integration are subject to regulatory approvals and internal corporate governance procedures and cannot be implemented unilaterally.

The matter has been adjourned to allow the absent defendants to be properly served while parties explore the possibility of resolving the dispute through settlement.

ℙℝ𝕆𝔾ℝ𝔼𝕊𝕊 𝕍𝕀𝔼𝕎𝕊 𝕀ℕ𝕊𝕀𝔾ℍ𝕋𝕊

The case highlights the growing importance of intellectual property protection, innovation, and regulatory transparency within Nigeria's financial technology ecosystem. As digital payment solutions continue to evolve, effective legal frameworks are essential to protect innovators while ensuring fair competition and maintaining the integrity of national financial infrastructure.

Should settlement efforts fail, the court's eventual decision could have significant implications for patent rights, technology licensing, and future collaborations between private innovators, financial institutions, and regulatory agencies in Nigeria.