Losses to Bank Fraud Decline by 51% as CBN Intensifies Security Measures
Nigeria’s banking sector has recorded a major victory in the fight against financial crime. A new report released on Wednesday reveals that losses to electronic payment fraud dropped significantly in 2025, marking the first major slump since 2021.
The Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) disclosed the figures at the 2026 Nigeria Electronic Fraud Forum (NeFF) kickoff in Lagos. According to the data, the total value of fraud losses fell by a staggering 51% to ₦25.85 billion in 2025, down from the alarming ₦52.26 billion recorded in 2024.
CBN Reforms Paying Off
Officials attributed this success to the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) aggressive regulatory interventions. Key among these is the mandatory linkage of Bank Verification Numbers (BVN) with National Identity Numbers (NIN), which has closed loopholes previously used for identity theft.
Premier Oiwoh, the Managing Director of NIBSS, noted that the decline occurred despite a surge in transaction volumes. "We can only attribute this improvement to interventions by CBN, the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), and enhanced monitoring across the payments ecosystem," Oiwoh stated.
New Threats Emerge
While the numbers are encouraging, experts warned that fraudsters are evolving. The report highlighted that while "web and mobile" channels remain the highest by volume, "Internet banking" accounted for the largest financial losses per incident. Additionally, "social engineering" and "insider abuses" were identified as growing threats that require urgent attention.
This development is a positive signal for the financial sector, which is currently undergoing a wave of reforms. It complements the recent NDIC payout of ₦3.31bn to depositors, reinforcing confidence in the safety of Nigerian banks.
What’s Next?
To sustain these gains, the CBN has directed lenders to reduce their fraud response time from 24 hours to under 30 minutes. Stakeholders are also rolling out a central "persons of interest" database to blacklist serial offenders.
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