Journal of Banking and Insurance Law

BETWEEN DEBT AND EQUITY: LEGAL UNCERTAINTY OF CCDS AND CCPS IN CORPORATE INSOLVENCY

2026-05-01T15:44:28+00:00

This paper examines the uncertain legal character of Compulsorily Convertible Debentures (CCDs) and Compulsorily Convertible Preference Shares (CCPS) under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC). While these instruments are designed to be hybrid funding mechanisms combining features of debt and equity, their treatment in insolvency proceedings remains unsettled because the IBC applies a strict binary classification between financial debt and share capital. The study analyses how courts have approached this issue through a substance-over-form or form-over-substance lens, with particular emphasis on the “time value of money” test under the IBC. This paper analyses decisions of the Courts in India and the paper shows that CCDs are inconsistently classified depending on contractual terms, repayment structure and the presence of a direct debtor-creditor relationship, while CCPS are generally treated as equity despite certain debt-like features. The paper argues that this fragmented jurisprudence creates uncertainty for investors, weakens predictability in insolvency resolution, and may deter capital formation. This paper also seeks to propose reccomendations recommending legislative clarification, harmonisation across statutes and a differentiated treatment of principal and interest components in hybrid instruments.

Financial Sanctions and Global Banking: Legal and Economic Implications for SWIFT Transactions after the Russia-Ukraine Conflict

2026-04-12T18:07:20+00:00

The unprecedented financial sanctions imposed on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 have fundamentally reshaped the architecture of international financial governance. Among the most consequential measures was the exclusion of selected Russian banks from the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) messaging system, effectively severing their connection to the global financial network. This article examines the legal and economic implications of SWIFT-related sanctions, analysing their effectiveness as instruments of economic coercion, their impact on global banking operations, and the legal frameworks governing their imposition and enforcement. Drawing upon international law, financial regulation theory, and empirical evidence, this paper evaluates the consequences of SWIFT disconnections for the targeted state, third-party jurisdictions, and the stability of the international financial system. The analysis further considers the strategic responses adopted by sanctioned states, including the development of alternative payment systems such as Russia's SPFS and China's CIPS, and their implications for the future of the dollar-denominated financial order. The article concludes with an assessment of the legal adequacy of existing sanctions frameworks and proposes reforms to enhance their proportionality, effectiveness, and compliance with international legal standards.

Bad Faith in Mandatory Motor Insurance Claims: Rethinking the Boundaries Between Contract and Tort in Ghanaian Insurance Law

2026-04-30T02:15:03+00:00

Mandatory third-party motor insurance in Ghana is designed to protect accident victims and promote public confidence in the insurance system. However, persistent practices of unjustified claim denial, delay, and technical repudiation by insurers reveal a structural weakness in the legal framework governing claims settlement. This article interrogates whether the prevailing treatment of insurance bad faith as a purely contractual breach provides adequate remedies or effective deterrence against insurer misconduct. Drawing on doctrinal analysis and comparative common-law jurisprudence, the article argues that the
contractual paradigm limited to expectation damages fails to capture the unique relational and public-interest character of mandatory motor insurance. It demonstrates that bad faith claim handling implicates interests beyond private bargain, particularly where third-party claimants are involuntarily brought within the insurance relationship. The article contends
that the rigid separation between contract and tort in Ghanaian insurance law is normatively unsustainable in this context. It proposes a reconceptualisation of insurer liability through either the judicial recognition of a tort of insurance bad faith or the adoption of a hybrid remedial framework incorporating tort-like sanctions. Such an approach, it is argued, would enhance accountability, deter opportunistic behaviour, and strengthen consumer confidence in Ghana’s compulsory motor insurance regime.