Vimal Shah’s testimony at the Milimani Magistrate’s Court has shed light on how a Ksh102.4 million foreign exchange transaction involving Bidco Africa ended with the promised US dollars failing to reach the company’s account.
Shah, the Bidco Africa chairman and founder, told the court that he agreed to the transaction after being introduced to Bülent Boytorun by his longtime business associate, former Capital Markets Authority chairman Nick Nesbitt.
He said his trust in Nesbitt played a major role in his decision to proceed with the deal.Shah said he had known Nesbitt for between 15 and 20 years and considered him a friend.
He told the court that Nesbitt’s previous work at IBM, involvement in business organisations and service as CMA chairman had strengthened his confidence in him.
“I trusted him because he’s a friend,” Shah told the court.
According to Shah, Nesbitt introduced Boytorun as an expert in cryptocurrency and stablecoin transactions. The arrangement presented to Bidco was that the company would send Kenya shillings and receive the equivalent amount in US dollars in its account the following day.
At the time, Shah said Bidco needed a regular supply of US dollars to pay for imported raw materials. However, the company was experiencing difficulties securing enough foreign currency through banks.
Shah testified that Bidco agreed to purchase USD745,000 at an exchange rate of 137.5, with May 24, 2023 set as the value date.
A Trade Finance Support Agreement was signed on May 23, setting out the terms of the transaction and requiring the dollars to be deposited into Bidco’s US dollar account the next day.Bidco then transferred Ksh102,437,500 to Bee N Bee Kenya Limited through the RTGS system.
However, when the agreed date arrived, the dollars were not deposited into Bidco’s account.
“On the 24th, nothing arrived,” Shah testified.
The failure created a serious problem for the manufacturing company, which needed the foreign currency to pay for raw materials required for its operations. Shah said the amount involved was substantial and that the transaction would not have gone ahead had Nesbitt not been involved.
He told the court that he had no previous relationship with Boytorun and would not have transferred such a large amount of money to someone he did not know.
“I can say very openly here that without the trust, I would never have given this sort of money to a Mr. Bulent, who I didn’t even know,” Shah said.
Shah further testified that he later understood Nesbitt to be a one-third partner in the UK-based Bee N Bee company, which owned the Kenyan company involved in the transaction.
This, he said, further strengthened his belief that Nesbitt and Boytorun were working together in the business.
The court also heard that Nesbitt was a signatory to accounts connected to the business and had been involved in opening the accounts.
Shah said the existence of the company and its banking arrangements gave him additional confidence that the transaction was genuine.
He told the court that he contacted Standard Chartered Bank to verify the company’s banking relationship and was informed that Bee N Bee Kenya Limited was an existing account holder.
Despite those checks, the promised foreign currency did not arrive after Bidco transferred the money.
Shah also told the court that after the transaction failed, he later came across advertisements by Nesbitt promoting what appeared to be a similar foreign exchange service under the name BNX Partners Limited.
According to his testimony, the advertisements offered customers an opportunity to exchange Kenya shillings for US dollars.
Shah said he confronted Nesbitt and asked him about the advertisements and the money that Bidco had transferred.
The court heard that Nesbitt responded: “I got to make money.”
Nesbitt is facing a charge of conspiracy to defraud contrary to Section 317 of the Penal Code. The charge relates to the May 24, 2023 transaction in Nairobi, where he is accused of conspiring to defraud Shah of Ksh102,437,500 by falsely representing that he was capable of converting the money into US dollars.
Nesbitt has denied the charge.
The case has placed the issue of trust at the centre of a high-value business transaction. Shah’s evidence indicates that his decision was influenced heavily by his long-standing relationship with Nesbitt rather than a personal relationship with Boytorun.
For Bidco, the transaction was also driven by a practical business need. The company required US dollars to meet its obligations for imported raw materials, while difficulties in accessing foreign currency through banks created pressure to find an alternative arrangement.
The existence of a signed agreement, a company with a banking relationship and the involvement of people Shah already knew all contributed to his decision to proceed.
But the transfer of Ksh102.4 million was followed by the failure to receive the USD745,000 that had been agreed upon.
The testimony has therefore placed considerable focus on the events surrounding the transaction, the roles of the individuals involved and the steps taken before the money was transferred.
The court will continue hearing the matter on October 7, 2026.
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