The Central Bank of Nigeria has warned Nigerians about an increase in fake claims regarding foreign currency transfers.
The bank said many fraudsters are using falsified SWIFT documents to support these claims.
In a statement on Tuesday, the Acting Director of Corporate Communications, Mrs. Hakama Ali, said the CBN had received several complaints from individuals, private businesses, law firms, and government agencies about uncredited foreign transfers.
She said, “Recently, the Central Bank of Nigeria has been inundated with claims by private entities, individuals, law firms, and government agencies that foreign currency funds allegedly transferred to them by foreign entities have yet to be credited to their accounts with Nigerian banks.”
The bank explained that these complaints often come with fake SWIFT MT103 forms and acknowledgment copies, which cannot be traced on the SWIFT platform. According to the CBN, this proves that the transfers never occurred.
“It has become imperative to state that the SWIFT ack copy and SWIFT MT103 that these claimants usually attach as evidence of remittance to beneficiary banks in Nigeria are not reliable,” the statement added.
The CBN clarified that it does not offer correspondent banking services for Nigerian banks or hold accounts for private businesses. It dismissed claims of funds being trapped in the CBN as “spurious and deceitful.”
“For the avoidance of doubt, we wish to state emphatically that the CBN neither provides correspondent banking services for Nigerian banks in foreign payments nor maintains accounts for private business entities,” the statement said.
The bank advised those with genuine complaints to contact the sender’s bank to trace or recover their funds. It also cautioned against false allegations, warning that such cases could be reported to law enforcement for investigation and prosecution.
The CBN urged Nigerians to stay vigilant to avoid becoming victims of these fraudulent schemes.
