Nigerian Banking Sector Faces N42.6 Billion Fraud Loss In Just Three Months – FITC

Nigerian Banking Sector Faces N42.6 Billion Fraud Loss In Just Three Months – FITC

Nigerian commercial banks experienced a staggering loss of N42.6 billion due to fraud and forgeries in the three months from April to June 2024.

This figure was revealed in the Financial Institutions Training Centre’s (FITC) Q2 2024 Fraud and Forgeries report, released on Saturday. The report, based on data from 28 deposit money institutions, highlighted a significant rise in fraudulent activities.

The amount lost in this quarter far exceeds the total fraud losses of 2023, which amounted to N9.4 billion. Specifically, the Q2 2024 loss represents an 8,993 percent increase compared to the N468.4 million lost in Q1 2024, and a 637 percent increase from the N5.7 billion lost in Q2 2023.

The report shows that miscellaneous and other types of fraud accounted for the largest portion of the losses, totaling N41.14 billion, which is 96.46 percent of the overall amount. This was followed by losses from fraudulent withdrawals, amounting to approximately N781.2 million, and computer/web fraud, which contributed around N400.7 million.

FITC has urged banks to bolster their access controls for settlement files. Recommendations include restricting access to a vetted group of authorized personnel, implementing multi-factor authentication, and using role-based access controls to minimize the risk of unauthorized modifications to settlement files.