Nigerian banks have suffered a significant blow as they lost a staggering N42.6 billion to fraud between April and June 2024. This figure, revealed in the Q2 2024 Fraud and Forgeries Report by the Financial Institutions Training Centre, surpasses the total fraud-related losses recorded by Nigerian banks throughout 2023.
The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) president has urged banks to strengthen their cybersecurity measures to combat the rising fraud threats. Cybersecurity experts emphasize that the widening technology adoption gaps and insider threats are major contributors to these losses.
Madumere Chukwuka, a cybersecurity researcher from King’s College London, highlighted that many fraud cases originate internally, with bank employees exploiting gaps in internal controls and auditing systems. He noted that despite significant investments in cybersecurity, banks are not fully integrating or utilising available tools, which reduces their effectiveness.
Bobola Ojo-Ami, co-founder of Recital Finance, advocated for decentralisation to enhance cybersecurity defences. He suggested that dispersing critical infrastructure makes it harder for hackers to exploit a single point of failure, thereby increasing the resilience of banking systems.
In response to these threats, several Nigerian banks are increasing their technology investments. For instance, GTBank plans to invest N98.50 billion in technology upgrades, while Access Holdings and Zenith Bank are also allocating significant portions of their capital raise proceeds to network infrastructure and cybersecurity.
The International Monetary Fund has advised central banks and authorities to develop comprehensive national cybersecurity strategies supported by effective regulation and supervisory capacity to mitigate these risks.
