GBTI acted irrational, lacking good faith with closure of WIN members accounts – High Court

The High Court has ruled that GBTI breached its contract by arbitrarily terminating the accounts of Vanessa Bagot, Heerawattie Mangaldeen, Abdul Ally, Natalia Angela of the We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) party, awarding the claimants $20,000 in damages and $300,000 in costs each, Attorney Darren Wade confirmed.
In a judgment delivered today by Justice Nicola Pierre and seen by this media house, the Court found that while financial institutions have a legitimate commercial objective to manage risks related to international sanctions, they cannot exercise contractual powers based on “generalised assumptions.”
The cases arose after the Respondent bank terminated the Applicants banking relationship following the imposition of U.S. sanctions against WIN party leader Azruddin Mohamed under the Global Magnitsky (GLOMAG) Act.
Justice Pierre ruled that the bank’s decision was not based on any specific conduct or evidence linked to the Applicants. Instead, the court found the terminations stemmed solely from their association with a political party whose leader was sanctioned.
“In the absence of any inquiry, and where less intrusive measures were available but not considered, the termination cannot be characterised as a rational or good faith exercise of the Respondent’s discretion,” the judgment stated.
The Court further noted that the bank breached implied terms of honesty and rationality, labeling the exercise of its contractual power as “arbitrary.”
While the Court declared the 31 July 2025 termination invalid and entered judgment for breach of contract, several other claims brought by the Applicant were dismissed. These included:
The claim under the Prevention of Discrimination Act was dismissed.
Claims based on procedural fairness and natural justice were rejected, as the matter was deemed a private contract issue.
The Court refused to declare the WIN party a legal entity distinct from its members.
The ruling follows reports that approximately 20 members on the WIN party’s candidates list have faced account closures at institutions including the Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry (GBTI).
In previous statements, GBTI has maintained that it exits customer relationships when changes exceed its “risk appetite,” citing regulatory frameworks and international best practices.
Despite the legal victory regarding the contract breach, the Court noted the Applicant failed to establish any specific financial loss flowing from the breach, resulting in the nominal damages award of $20,000.