The High Court has granted Equity Bank an order to freeze accounts and cryptocurrency holdings linked to an alleged KSh1.5 billion fraud, limiting the frozen assets to a combined KSh303.2 million.

The freeze applies to accounts of four individuals and five companies accused of receiving part of the diverted funds, covering banks such as UBA, Absa, NCBA, Stanbic and Co-operative Bank, as well as crypto holdings on platforms including Binance.

The dispute centres on roughly KSh1.49 billion allegedly moved from Equity’s salary-processing ledger between November 2023 and June 2024, which the bank says was facilitated by its former manager-salary processing, Mr David Machiri Kimani, using his authorised access.

Equity identified Mr Kimani, Mr Owen Karanja Kuguru, Ms Ruth Muthoni Kamau and the firms KT Owen Group Limited, Axteron Technologies Ltd, Mac and Gray Trading Ltd, Blue Kenfresh Ltd, Goodmans Fresh Ltd and Muda Ventures Limited as defendants, alleging the companies were incorporated specifically to receive the diverted money.

The judge cited SWIFT messages bearing Equity’s code EQBLKENAXXX and confirmed the transfers were executed with Mr Kimani’s computer and user ID, noting the risk that cryptocurrency could be quickly dissipated.

Individual freezing limits were set at KSh156.2 million for Axteron accounts at UBA and Absa; KSh30.8 million for KT Owen Group’s NCBA account; KSh14 million for Mac and Gray Trading’s accounts at Stanbic and Co-operative Bank; KSh32.8 million for Blue Kenfresh’s Co-operative Bank account; KSh24.2 million for Goodmans Fresh’s account at the same bank; KSh36 million for Ms Kamau’s NCBA and Co-operative Bank accounts; and KSh8.7 million for Muda Ventures’ UBA account, totalling KSh303.2 million.

Digital assets linked to Mr Kimani, Mr Kuguru and Ms Kamau are also frozen, with the judge ordering conversion into ordinary currency within ten days and deposit of the proceeds in a Central Bank-licensed tier-one bank under the Central Bank of Kenya’s escrow.

Following the alleged fraud, Equity Bank dismissed about 195 employees after an internal review uncovered more than 40 suspicious transactions executed with the former manager’s credentials.

Defendants have made separate submissions: Mr Kimani’s father, Joseph Kimani Machiri, denied his son’s ownership of crypto accounts; Mr Kuguru claimed the payments to his companies were legitimate client transactions earning a five per cent commission; Ms Kamau contested the use of confidential banking and personal information, but the judge dismissed her application, citing procedural issues and leaving the matter for a full trial.

The judge declined additional tracing and accounting orders, stating that such orders would assume liability before a full hearing, and noted that while the plaintiff’s right appears infringed, success at trial is not guaranteed.