There is panic in the Nigerian banking industry as the the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, says it would soon begin the prosecution of some banks’ top officials for aiding politically exposed persons to commit financial frauds, including money laundering.
EFCC chairman Ola Olukoyede said the antigraft agency is committed to working with the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) in sanitising the financial services sector through robust enforcement of anti-money laundering laws and insulating it from attacks by cybercriminals both from within and from without.
“I am able to tell you with every sense of humility that we will no longer fold our arms. As a matter of fact, some of the mind-boggling major financial fraud that has been carried out that looked like an onslaught against the economy was done through the banking industry.
“And it is so sad that we have also compiled our documents, we have made the necessary investigations, we have concluded on certain. Very soon you will see some banks being prosecuted, some top officials being prosecuted. We need to just do something drastic to bring everybody in line and to make us do the right thing.
“It’s extremely important in a system without penal sanctions for criminal infractions. That system will never survive,” the head of the anti-corruption agency said on Tuesday at the 17th annual banking & finance conference in Abuja.
He said sharp practices such as forex round-tripping, defrauding of depositors through phantom charges, and complicity in money laundering and illicit financial schemes involving politically exposed persons continue to undermine the integrity of the sector and, by extension, the nation’s economy.
Mr Olukoyede said investigations have shown that many operators frequently devise means to circumvent regulations and rules in a desperate bid for higher yields and bottom line.
He urged the bankers’ community not to leave the conference ground without a renewed commitment to professionalism and determination to provide services that will assist the growth and development of the Nigerian economy.
He said from experience with the investigation of financial crimes involving members of the profession, there is gross contempt for regulation that borders on impunity.
“So since we are ready to work with you to sanitize the system, we must also note that it is extremely important when there is a criminal infraction, penal sanctions will follow,” he said, adding that for banks and the financial services sector to adequately complement the efforts of the government in stimulating the economy, the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria must step up its regulatory oversight of members to adhere to the codes of professionalism.
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