Gombe Educational Services Limited has won a court case against Equity Bank (U) Limited after the High Court found the lender breached a loan facility agreement by failing to disburse funds and later rescinding the contract.Justice Patience T.E. Rubagumya awarded the school Shs122,248,000 and Shs31,500,000 for valuation and audit expenses, plus Shs80,000,000 in general damages, with interest and costs.Court heard that Gombe Educational Services requested a combined facility of Shs18.5 billion in November 2019, and Equity Bank later issued a loan offer of Shs17.8 billion which was accepted and secured by several properties and corporate guarantees.According to the judgment, the bank halted disbursement after schools were closed during the COVID-19 pandemic, then rescinded the agreement in March 2021, citing unfavourable conditions in the education sector.The plaintiff argued that it had complied with all conditions precedent, incurred major expenses in reliance on the facility, and was left unable to secure alternative financing because the bank retained its title documents.The defendant denied breach, arguing that the loan never crystallised because conditions precedent were unmet and that the pandemic had affected cash flow projections.Justice Rubagumya held that the bank had not shown that disbursing the facility during the pandemic would have imposed a radically different obligation from the one it accepted when signing the contract.The judge found no proof that COVID-19 frustrated the agreement and concluded that Equity Bank breached the contract by failing to avail the facility and arbitrarily rescinding it.She declared the loan agreement breached, ordered payment of the proven costs, awarded general damages, and granted interest at 10% on the costs and 6% on the damages until payment in full. The post Court Orders Equity Bank to Pay Shs233M for Breaching Shs17.8Bn School Loan Deal appeared first on Business Focus.