Nigerian fintech platform PalmPay Limited is embroiled in a high-stakes corporate dispute after transferring N750.37 million ($470,000) from tech firm Kudiwave Technologies, citing mandatory judicial enforcement directives.
Kudiwave Technologies provides digital financial services, Which includes crypto currencies exchanges operating in partnership with 9 Payment Service Bank (9PSB).
According to statement released by PalmPay’s legal counsel, Caleb Aluya, and Kudiwave’s solicitors, Tony Eseigbe & Co., the debit was executed under the narration “Judicial Adjustment”.
Kudiwave accused the fintech firm of executing an unauthorized transaction on July 15, 2026, alleging it occurred weeks after a Lagos Federal High Court set aside an April Post-No-Debit restriction.
PalmPay countered that the transfer complied with a subsequent June 29 ruling in suit FHC/L/CS/795/2026, which directed the payment provider to remit the funds to a designated Police Recovery Account.
“Kudiwave Technologies Limited said PalmPay Limited unlawfully debited N750,369,439.04 from its account… Kudiwave stated that it never authorised the transfer and was never notified of it,” the solicitors’ statement read
Company spokesperson Olorunfemi Hanson emphasized that PalmPay derived no commercial benefit from the funds, maintaining that regulated financial institutions are legally bound to comply with valid court directives.
“At the time the transfer was effected, the court order remained valid and had not been set aside,” Hanson stated, adding that PalmPay did not retain or benefit from the funds.
The legal dispute highlights growing industry-wide scrutiny surrounding asset freezes, police recovery accounts, and the enforcement of conflicting judicial orders within West Africa’s fast-expanding digital payments sector.
