The High Court in Accra has decisively rejected a challenge filed by businessman Nana Kwame Bediako (alias Cheddar) seeking to restrain the enforcement of a $14.9 million judgment obtained by UK-based Cola Holdings Limited, awarding costs of GH¢20,000 against him. The ruling, issued on July 27, 2026, follows a previous dismissal by the court on July 27, 2026, which effectively halts Cola Holdings’ ability to enforce the judgment.
The application, brought by lawyer Bobby Banson, argued that Cola Holdings should prevent Mr. Bediako from personally appealing the refusal to set aside the judgment registration in Ghana, pending a further appeal.
Justice Doris Awuah Dabanka-Bekoe, presiding over the Commercial Division, dismissed the application, citing the principles of stays of execution pending appeal, as established in the Joseph v Jebeille case and affirmed in the NDK Financial Services Ltd v Yiadom Construction and Electrical Works Ltd case. The court determined that Mr. Bediako’s arguments regarding the currency of the debt, the interest rate applied, and alleged public policy violations did not establish sufficient grounds for injunctive relief.
The judgment, dated January 23, 2025, is a direct result of a Deed of Indemnity signed in respect of Mr. Bediako’s share of the repayment of a loan from the International Finance Corporation. Cola Holdings guaranteed this loan to Kensington Residential Partners 1 Ltd, a company in which Mr. Bediako and Azad Cola hold shares. Following default, IFC assigned its interest in the loan to Cola Holdings.
The court found that Cola Holdings possesses identifiable assets within Ghana, including a mortgage certificate and a registration of mortgage at the Lands Commission, demonstrating registered security interests in immovable and other assets.
The court rejected Mr. Bediako’s assertion that Cola Holdings had ‘no traceable assets in Ghana,’ describing the claim as ‘demonstrably at odds with the record’. The court awarded costs of GH₵20,000 against Mr. Bediako, declining to award punitive costs, emphasizing that a litigant is entitled to test a ruling by appeal and seek protection pending that appeal.
The ruling follows a separate High Court decision on July 21, 2026, which granted Cola Holdings and its Receiver police assistance to take possession of the No. 1 Oxford Street Hotel in Osu, a property linked to Mr. Bediako. The court in that matter found that Cola Holdings had properly registered its security interest over the property and was entitled to enforce its rights under the Borrowers and Lenders Act, 2020 (Act 1052).
Cola Holdings and Tata Kosi Foliba, representing the respondent, were instructed to present evidence regarding the property’s security interest; however, the proceedings were ultimately adjourned, demonstrating a continuing legal battle over the property’s ownership and control.
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Source: Adom Online
