Court orders 54 banks to return N9.3 billion diverted in cybercrime attack

A Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered 54 banks to return N9.3 billion fraudulently transferred in a cybercrime activity from an unnamed old-generation bank. Justice Deinde Dipeolu delivered the judgment on April 15, 2025, following an ex parte motion filed in suit number FHC/L/CS/629/2025.

The Lagos court directed all financial institutions involved in the cyberattack to place a Post No Debit restriction on all recipient accounts and commence an immediate return of available funds to the affected bank. 

According to reports, the originating bank (the plaintiff) explained that on March 23, 2025, the cybercrime attack was launched on its core banking system resulting in unauthorised debits from multiple customer accounts. The stolen funds of N9,329,322,870 were then distributed across accounts in 54 financial institutions. 

After detecting the attack, the bank notified all financial institutions involved and launched its investigations to track the disbursements.

Further reports about the incident explained that funds were wired in multiple batches from the originating bank to primary accounts. Later, they were again transferred into other accounts held by secondary and tertiary beneficiaries. 

Also Read: EFCC arrests 4 commercial bank fraud masterminds in Abuja.

The Justice ruled that all affected banks must provide details of the implicated accounts, including balances and amounts already transferred. They must also share comprehensive customer data related to the transactions, including names and destination accounts.

While ordering the immediate return of all recoverable funds to the plaintiff bank, the court mandated that restrictions be maintained on all accounts that received any portion of the funds until full recovery is made, limited to the amount each received. It again clarified that the ruling applies strictly to erroneously transferred funds and does not infringe on other customer deposits.

“For the avoidance of doubt and for clarity, the order is only in respect of funds erroneously transferred and sums salvaged,” the ruling stated.

Rising cybercrime targeting Nigerian banks

The latest development further underscores the persistent rise in cybercrime activities on Nigerian banks. Despite efforts by banks to safeguard their systems and operations through core banking upgrades, there seems to be little or no impact. 

According to a report by Check Point Software Technologies, a cyber security platform provider, cyberattacks on Nigeria’s banking and financial sector are about 4,718 weekly. This was further solidified by a 2024 African Perspectives on Cyber Security Report that Nigeria had witnessed a sharp rise in cyberattacks, with the country ranked 19th in the global rankings for attacks as of July 2024. This placed Nigeria as the most vulnerable to cyberattacks in Africa.

Another report by the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System noted that fraudsters successfully scammed over 80,658 bank customers in 2023, where bank customers lost N59.33 billion between 2019 and 2023. 

Moreover, it was revealed that financial institutions ranging from commercial banks, fintech companies, and network service providers accounted for losses totaling over ₦1.1 trillion between 2017 and 2023. This was as a result of various cyber threats such as hacking, ransomware, and malware attacks.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) expressed concerns about the rise of cybercrime in the nation and the attending cost. While addressing the issue last year, the agency noted that cybercrime accounted for the larger share of 3,455 cases recorded between H2 2023 and H1 2024. It added that $500m was lost to the scourge in 2022.

Strategies to curb cyberattacks

As part of the implementation to curb cybercrime, EFCC said a cybercrime research centre is in construction.

“We are putting up a Cybercrime Research Centre in collaboration with one of the fintechs in Nigeria. The centre will take a minimum of 500 young Nigerians at a time and train them in cyber security and all areas of cybercrime research so that we’ll be able to make something out of them,” the agency stated in 2024.

In its move to improve and strengthen the country’s digital system, the National Security Adviser, Malam Nuhu Ribadu stated that proactive steps are being deployed. 

He confirmed that the government has developed 85% of its AI programs with local vendors’ help and stressed the need to embrace the rapid advancement of AI and the growing need to secure Nigeria’s digital assets.

“As we embark on today’s discussion, let us embrace the opportunity that AI presents, which brings both challenges and opportunities. The challenge is that you never know when you are going to be hit or if you have already been hit,” he said last year.