The High Court (Commercial Division) in Accra has enforced a judgment issued by the High Court of England and Wales against businessman and politician Nana Kwame Bediako, popularly known as Cheddar, ordering him to pay more than US$14.9 million, plus interest and costs, to UK-based firm Cola Holdings Limited.
According to a notice published in the Daily Graphic on Thursday, January 22, 2026, the foreign judgment was formally registered in Ghana on May 20, 2025, following an application by Cola Holdings Limited for the English court’s decision to be recognised and enforced locally.
The case stems from a judgment originally delivered on January 23, 2025, by Deputy Master Sabic KC of the High Court of England and Wales, with subsequent variations granted in March and April 2025. Once registered, the judgment became legally binding and enforceable in Ghana.
The court ordered Nana Kwame Bediako to pay US$14,928,314.70 as the principal judgment debt, together with interest at a rate of eight percent per annum, calculated from January 23, 2025, until full payment is made. As of December 23, 2025, the accrued interest alone amounted to US$1,092,834.64.
In addition, the court awarded GH₵15,000 in legal costs to Cola Holdings Limited. At the prevailing Treasury exchange rate of GH₵16.15 to the US dollar, the total amount due — including interest and costs — translates to approximately GH₵258.76 million, with the sum expected to increase further as interest continues to accrue.
The court also granted an order for substituted service, permitting the judgment to be served by posting copies at Nana Kwame Bediako’s residence at 13 Avenue Lincoln, Osu, on the High Court notice board, and through a one-time publication in the Daily Graphic. The notices are to remain posted for seven days.
Cheddar Responds, Says Legal Process Is Ongoing
Following widespread media reports on the court decision, Nana Kwame Bediako issued a statement disputing the claims and insisting that the matter is still under legal contest.
According to Cheddar, he did not personally contract any loan from Cola Holdings Limited, nor did the company pay any money to him. He explained that the transaction in question relates to a loan allegedly contracted by Kensington Residential Partners 1 Limited (KRP 1) from the International Finance Corporation (IFC). KRP 1, he noted, is jointly owned by himself and Mr. Azad Cola, the owner of Cola Holdings Limited.
He said he was surprised when Cola Holdings initiated legal action against him personally in the United Kingdom to recover a loan he insists was not taken in his personal capacity. Cheddar further disclosed that the UK judgment was delivered without a defence being filed on his behalf, allegedly due to the failure of his UK-based lawyers to submit the necessary court processes.
In response to the enforcement of the judgment in Ghana, Cheddar stated that he instructed his lawyers to resist its enforcement on the grounds that it was obtained through fraud and that enforcing it would be against public policy. Although the High Court declined to set aside the registration of the foreign judgment, he has since directed his legal team to file an appeal and seek a stay of execution pending the exhaustion of all appeal processes.
He also accused Cola Holdings of attempting double recovery, alleging that the company is seeking to enforce the same debt against both himself and KRP 1 in Ghana. According to him, this amounts to unjust enrichment and an abuse of the court process.
Cheddar further claimed that Cola Holdings failed to disclose to the UK courts that similar proceedings were already ongoing in Ghana against KRP 1 — a concealment he believes materially misled the UK court into granting the judgment against him.
Reaffirming his confidence in Ghana’s judicial system, Nana Kwame Bediako stated that he remains committed to the rule of law and is confident that “truth will stand” once all legal processes are concluded.
The case remains the subject of ongoing legal proceedings in Ghana and the United Kingdom.
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