The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has announced it will soon begin prosecuting banks and their top officials for financial fraud.
EFCC Chairman Olanipekun Olukoyede made this announcement on Tuesday at the 17th Annual Banking and Finance Conference in Abuja.
The conference, organized by the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria , was themed “Accelerated Economic Growth and Development, the State of Play and the Way Forward.”
Olukoyede said the EFCC has completed its investigations and gathered the necessary evidence. He stated, “We will no longer fold our arms. We need to do something drastic to bring everybody in line and make us do the right thing.”
He revealed that significant financial frauds were committed through the banking sector. “About 70 percent of financial crimes in Nigeria are traceable to the banking sector,” Olukoyede said earlier this year. “This scenario is disturbing and unacceptable.”
Olukoyede stressed the need for strong sanctions against bankers involved in financial crimes. “In a system where there are no sanctions, that system will not survive,” he added.
He also called on the CIBN to improve its regulatory oversight. “On our part as EFCC, we are committed to working with the institute and the financial services sector through robust enforcement of anti-money laundering laws and combating cyber-criminal attacks,” Olukoyede said.
Olukoyede categorized banking fraud into two types: internal and external. “The inside-related fraud includes selling customers’ deposits, authorizing loan facilities, forgery, and other criminal practices. The outsider-related fraud includes hacking, ATM fraud, and conspiracy,” he explained.
He expressed concern over the collaboration between bankers and outsiders in fraud cases, calling it “absurd” and damaging to the financial system.
