Facts:

Each Appellant took a loan from Oceanic Bank Plc and was separately and individually liable to repay its said debt. The 1st Appellant obtained 450 million naira to complete its Radisson Blue Hotel at Ozumba Mbadiwe Street Victoria Island Lagos. Oceanic Bank Plc availed it this loan. The loan obtained by the 2nd Appellant was by way of an underwriting commitment to the sum of 2.3 billion naira to purchase shares in blue chip companies such as First Bank of Nigeria Plc., which was later restructured as a five-year term loan for it on a one-year moratorium. The 3rd Appellant borrowed the sum of 10 million US Dollars and 200 million naira to import its raw materials and augment its working capital requirement. Oceanic Bank Plc approved this loan. Each Appellant utilized its loan but failed to repay the loan as and when due in spite of repeated demands by Oceanic Bank. The Respondent at some point purchased Oceanic Bank and assumed its assets including the debts due from each Appellant to Oceanic Bank Plc and their accounts as customers of the bank.
One, Dr. Oba Otudeko, Chairman Honeywell Group Limited, who was not a party to any of the loan contracts between each Appellant and the Respondent but obviously has an interest in each of the Appellants and who is not a party to this case, promoted and facilitated a negotiation of their repayment obligations under their individual loan contracts to secure a waiver by the Respondent of some of the amount of debt due from each of them. The negotiation which took place on 22nd July 2013 resulted in an oral agreement that the Appellants jointly pay a collective sum of 3.5 Billion naira as full and final satisfaction of the sum total of their individual indebtedness being 5.5 billion naira subject to the conditions that, they pay a collective sum of 500 million naira immediately on 22-7-2013 and 3 billion naira in a lump sum before the then visiting Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) examiners who were in the Respondent’s bank examining its records departed from the bank.
By a letter dated 22nd July 2013, Honeywell Group Limited informed the Appellant it had paid ₦500 million. It also proposed to stagger the payment of the ₦3 billion contrary to the agreement earlier reached. However, the Appellant rejected the new proposal and demanded a reversion to the agreement made on 22nd July 2013. By another letter, the Appellant again informed Honeywell Group Limited that the agreement of 22nd July 2013 had become extinct and frustrated in August 2013 following the breach as contained and proposed by Honeywell Group Limited in its letter dated 22nd July 2013. The Appellant further stated that due to Honeywell Group Limited’s unending proposal, its Board of Directors had rejected the offer to pay ₦3.5billion as full and final settlement of the Respondents’ debt.
Consequently, the Respondents filed a suit at the Federal High Court. Principally, they sought a declaration that as customers of the Appellant, they were no longer indebted to the Appellant because of the Appellant’s agreement to accept ₦ 3.5 billion, and their payment of the amount as full and final payment of their debt. They also filed a motion on notice for an interlocutory injunction to restrain the Appellant from publishing their names on a list of the debts in accordance with a directive given by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Upon receipt of the processes, the Appellant filed a notice of preliminary objection. It sought the striking out and/or dismissal of the suit by the trial court for want of jurisdiction. The ground of the objection, inter alia, was that the action was over a simple contract and that the Federal High Court had no jurisdiction to hear or determine same. In its ruling, the trial court held that it had the requisite jurisdiction to adjudicate the Respondents’ claims. So, it dismissed the Appellant’s preliminary objection.
Aggrieved, the Appellant appealed to the Court of Appeal, which affirmed the trial court’s ruling and dismissed the appeal.
Still aggrieved, the Appellant appealed to the Supreme Court.