Reports suggest that a significant fraud incident occurred at Nigeria’s oldest bank, resulting in the theft of ₦7 billion from customer accounts by unidentified individuals. The incident sheds light on the growing sophistication of fraud within the country’s financial services sector. In the second quarter of 2024, Nigerian banks faced substantial losses to fraud, with only a fraction of financial institutions reporting such cases, indicating potential underreporting due to concerns about reputation.
The fraud at First Bank involved the unauthorized diversion of funds from multiple customer accounts, with the stolen funds being transferred to various bank accounts, including those of fintech companies. This tactic is often used by fraudsters to obscure the trail of illicit funds and hinder law enforcement’s efforts to trace and recover the money.
The incident, which reportedly spanned several months, went unnoticed for a significant period, highlighting significant internal control weaknesses within the bank. In a separate fraud case earlier in May 2024, a First Bank employee was discovered to have fraudulently diverted a substantial sum of money over two years, leading to the dismissal of numerous employees and the departure of the bank’s CEO.
First Bank has initiated the recovery process and informed law enforcement about the incident. Banks typically collaborate with authorities to recover stolen funds, although it remains uncertain whether legal action has been taken in this case.