Connect with us

E-Financial

NIBSS Says Electronic Payment Transactions Increased 50% in 2014

Published

on

CBN HQ.jpg
Kindly share this post

Nigeria Inter Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) has disclosed, in its latest statistics, that 50% growth was recorded in the level of usage of various electronic payment transactions in the country in 2014.

According to NIBSS, across all payment channels in the financial industry, including electronic and non-electronic based platform, Nigeria has experienced a massive rise in the volume and value of transactions processed yearly.

The electronic payments platforms include the Internet banking, e-Commerce, Point of Sales (PoS), Automated Teller Machines (ATM) and the mobile platforms.

NIBSS, in its ‘2014 E-Payment Fraud Landscape in Nigeria showed that in 2014, it processed over 100 million transactions in terms of volume with a corresponding value of over N40 trillion (over $208 billion).

It also disclosed that the volume of transactions grew by over 50 per cent between 2013 and 2014 with its value also growing by 28 per cent.

Meanwhile, the Central Switch said fraud in the Nigerian payments system and also on a global scale has been on the increase over the past few years as technological advances impact on the way people pay.

According to NIBSS, Internet banking, the ever-increasing use of the ATMs and other electronic platforms have in one way or the other accelerated the growth of fraudulent activities, adding that cheques and over-the-counter fraud has given more room to a sophisticated and more concise electronic type of fraud.

In Nigeria, it disclosed that Internet banking and ATM were the lead channels for perpetuating e-fraud in 2014.Specifically, NIBSS disclosed that in 2014, Nigeria recorded 1,461 cases of fraud compared to 822 in 2013.

It explained that from the 1,461 cases, the value of attempted fraud reported was N7, 750, 152, 748, while the actual loss was N6, 215, 987, 323 in 2014 compared to N19, 148, 787, 069 attempts and N485, 194, 350 actual loss value reported in 2013.

The figures depict that more fraud occurred in 2014 and more loss was recorded in terms of value compared to the attempted fraud value”, the document stated.

NIBSS disclosed that in 2014, ATM machines were the major victims of fraudulent activities in terms of volume as it experienced the highest number of fraudulent transactions. It however, said that Internet banking actually accounted for a loss of about N3.2 billion to fraudulent transactions in terms of value.

“As for 2013, there were quite substantial amount fraudulent transactions in terms of volume on Internet banking and Web based transactions. Also, Across the Counter accounted for almost N16 billion of the attempted fraud, which is the bulk of fraud witnessed in 2013”, the document disclosed.

According to NIBSS, electronic platforms such as Internet Banking had 287 volume of fraud for 2014; ecommerce 114; Point of Sales 166; Web 218; ATM 491, Mobile 21. Non-electronic platforms including Across Counter and Cheques recorded 153 and 11 volume of transactions.

NIBSS, while giving more insight into the menace, explained that in the first quarter of 2014, the country recorded 336 volume of fraud, whose attempted value was N1, 003, 124, 742 with an actual loss of N172, 920, 263, which was 17 per cent actual loss value in attempted fraud value.

In the second quarter, 298 volume was recorded, with and attempted value of N523, 849, 238 and actual loss value of N441, 714, 718 and 84 per cent actual loss value in attempted fraud value.

For the third quarter, there were 366 fraud cases, N3, 708, 992, 359 attempted value and N3, 170, 221, 230 actual loss value and 85 per cent actual loss value in attempted fraud value.

For the last quarter of 2014, the figure increased to 461, with an attempted value put at N2, 514, 186, 408 and actual loss value of N2, 431, 131, 110, resulting in 97 per cent actual loss vale in attempted fraud value.

NIBSS informed that in the year under review, as part of the investigation process, a number of suspects and criminals were apprehended after fraud had been reported.

“Although, the figures show that more work needs to be done to improve apprehension rate. However, the low number is due to some constraints like the law/legal context that isn’t clearly defined when it comes to financial and cyber-crimes carried out using electronic platforms. A major issue is the collaboration of the law enforcement agents and the financial industry”, it stated.

In the document, NIBSS said 2014 was quite alarming in terms of fraud as it recorded very high volume and value of fraudulent transactions in Nigeria (Note that we suspect that the actual volumes and values are usually way higher than reported).

However, fraudulent transactions (attempted fraud value) as a percentage of the total transactions value for 2014 were less than one per cent.

This generally showed that transactions are highly secure but the success rate at which attempted fraudulent transactions are successful is equally high up to 80 per cent in 2014 as against three per cent in 2013.

Speaking on fraud outlook for 2015, NIBSS posited that the advent of the fraud scene in 2014, which was a rollercoaster ride for all holders of critical intellectual and financial property all over the world and in Nigeria, 2015 must not be underestimated.

“Here at NIBSS, we give a concise look towards the future on possible trends and events that might potentially occur in the fraud scene in Nigeria,” the document read.

In mitigating the effect in 2015, NIBSS said the introduction of the biometrics project, also known as Bank Verification Number (BVN), which is a number used for proper customer identification, and can be used as verification at the point of Banking operations, said this initiative is expected to solve the age long problem of proper identity in the banking sector.

“We believe that once the BVN is made mandatory, e- payment and Bank frauds would reduce by about 60 per cent. It is being hoped that the BVN would be made mandatory before the end of 2015.

“From 2014, the Federal Government of Nigeria, CBN and major players in the financial industry took steps to better improve security measures in the country. In terms of legal aspect to improve prosecution, the National Assembly in collaboration with the Senate passed a Cybercrime Bill. This bill spells out punishment for e-crimes that were hitherto not deemed as crimes before. We believe this would serve as deterrents to fraudsters.

“However, if the bill is not signed into law by the president before the expiration of the tenure on May 29th 2015, the Cyber-crime bill would have to start its process all over again from the beginning”, NIBSS stated.


Kindly share this post

Nigeria CommunicationsWeek believes that technology makes life more exciting and helps improve the lives of people around Nigeria and indeed the world. So since 2007, we have devoted our energy to independent reportage of technology and how they affect lives.

Continue Reading
Advertisement
Comments

E-Financial

Edun, Finance Minister Inaugurates NDIC New Management

Published

on

Kindly share this post

Mr Wale Edun, minister of Finance and coordinating minister of the Economy,  has inaugurated Mr Thompson Oludare Sunday, new managing director/chief executive officer of the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), and Dr Kabir Sabo Katata, executive director (Operations),  at the Ministry of Finance, Abuja.

Mr Wale Edun, minister of Finance and coordinating minister of the Economy, flanked by Mr Thompson Oludare Sunday, new managing director/chief executive officer of the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), and Dr Kabir Sabo Katata, executive director (Operations),

In his speech during the occasion, the Minister submitted that the NDIC, as a component of the financial safety-net has a crucial role to play in the nation’s march to economic stability and prosperity.

He therefore charged the Management team to bring their diverse wealth of experience to bear on their new assignment while assuring them of the ministry’s full support in the task ahead.

Responding, Mr Sunday who spoke on behalf of the Management team, expressed appreciation to His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for their appointment.

He assured the Hon Minister of the readiness of the Management under his leadership to live up to expectations of the President in particular and the nation in general in the discharge of their duties.

The Management  later received by the Corporation’s Head Office with a warm welcome by the workforce.

A statement signed by Hawwau Gambo, head, Communication & Public Affairs Department, revealed that Addressing the workers on behalf the Management team, Mr. Sunday promised to work in harmony with the staff to move the Corporation to its next level performance.

He stressed that the Management’s focus would be based on the public policy objectives, functions and mandate devolved on the Corporation by the enabling law that established it.

Thompson Oludare Sunday is a seasoned financial expert with over 30 years of regulatory and supervisory experience.

Having cut his teeth with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in 1989, he went ahead to acquire high-end knowledge in Central Banking, spending 24 unbroken years in banking supervision.

While his vast experience is in the regulation and supervision of licensed institutions, his deep expertise span corporate governance, risk management and compliance as veritable tool for ensuring the safety and soundness of institutions.

He is a highly analytical and cross functional team worker with strong interest in building individual and institutional capacity for transformation and excellence.

Thompson’s skills and experience were horned by several key responsibilities and special assignments he handled for the apex Bank before his retirement as a Director 2021.

Kabir Sabo Katata, ED (Operations),  is a quantitative energy strategist and computational finance expert with strong power trading and risk management experience.

He has over twenty-eight years’ experience in the design and management of technically innovative systems in multiple industries including telecommunications, IT, energy (petroleum & power), finance and government.

He is a specialist in sophisticated financial optimization, the application of modern statistical techniques and mathematics to energy, deposit insurance and banking sectors.

Dr. Katata joined the service of the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation in 2012 as an Assistant Director in the Research, Policy and International Relations Department and rose to the pinnacle of his career as Director in January 2022, before his new appointment as Executive Director (Operations).

 

 


Kindly share this post
Continue Reading

E-Financial

NIBBS: Banks Close 29.4m Accounts, Dormant Accounts Hit 33.39m

Published

on

Kindly share this post

Banks in Nigeria closed 29.4 million accounts as of March 2025, according to the latest report by the Nigerian Interbank Settlement System (NIBSS).

NIBBS: Banks Close 29.4m Accounts, Dormant Accounts Hit 33.39m

The figure represents a sharp year-on-year increase of 30.43 per cent from the 22.54 million closed accounts recorded in March 2024.

It also reflects a steady rise in account closures over recent months, with 33.29 million closed accounts reported in February 2025 and 29.43 million in January.

The report also revealed a significant increase in dormant accounts, which surged to 33.39 million in March 2025, up from 19.79 million in the same period in 2024, a 71.3 per cent rise in inactive accounts over the past year.

Despite the spike in closures and dormant accounts, the number of active bank accounts rose from 219.64 million in March 2024 to 320.05 million in March 2025, representing an increase of over 100 million, or 45.7 per cent.

NIBSS defines a dormant account as one that has seen no deposit, withdrawal, transfer, or point-of-sale transaction for a period of six months.

The surge in account closures and dormancy follows the Central Bank of Nigeria’s directive issued in December 2023, mandating commercial banks to restrict Tier-1 accounts not linked to a Bank Verification Number (BVN) and National Identification Number (NIN) by March 1, 2024.

In response to the directive, BVN enrolment increased from 61.6 million in April 2024 to 66.23 million by July 2025, as more Nigerians rushed to meet the CBN’s compliance deadline.

 

 


Kindly share this post
Continue Reading

E-Financial

Cardoso, CBN Boss Risks Arrest over Alleged N5.2 Trillion Unremitted Funds

Published

on

Kindly share this post

The Joint Committee of the House of Representatives on Public Accounts and Public Assets has threatened to issue a warrant of arrest against Mr. Olayemi Cardoso, governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), over repeated failure to honour its invitations regarding the probe into non-compliance with the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2007 and Finance Act 2020.

Cardoso, CBN Boss Risks Arrest over AllegdedN5.2 Trillion Unremitted Funds

Olayemi Cardoso,, Gov, CBN

In a joint statement released on Friday and signed by Hon. Bamidele Salam and Hon. Ademorin Kuye,  chairmen of the committees, the lawmakers decried the CBN governor’s continued disregard for legislative summons.

The committee is investigating the non-remittance of operating surplus as well as the mismanagement of unclaimed dividends and dormant account balances.

According to the committee, the Office of the Auditor General for the Federation reported a liability of N5.2 trillion in unremitted operating surplus due to the federal government from 2016 to 2022; a claim corroborated by the Fiscal Responsibility Commission in a separate submission to the National Assembly.

The committee cited provisions of the Finance Act 2020, which mandate that unclaimed dividends from publicly listed companies and dormant bank account balances older than six years be transferred into the Unclaimed Fund Trust Fund. The fund is to be managed by a Governing Council led by the Minister of Finance and the Debt Management Office (DMO).

Contrary to this, the CBN maintains that the Financial Institutions Act 2020 empowers it to manage dormant balances.

However, the committee noted that the Attorney General of the Federation has issued a legal opinion affirming that the Finance Act 2020 remains the valid law guiding the management of such funds.

Following extensive submissions, the committee resolved that the CBN must remit N3.64 trillion, representing 70% of the undisputed N5.2 trillion operating surplus, within 14 days from receipt of its June 27, 2025, directive, pending final reconciliation of the disputed amount.

Additionally, the apex bank was directed to submit a detailed report on the total sum of unclaimed dividends and dormant account balances by June 30, 2025.

The CBN was also ordered to transfer these funds into the Unclaimed Fund Trust Fund within 14 days and furnish the House with evidence of the transaction.

The lawmakers expressed frustration that, despite the clear directives and ample time, the CBN governor has failed to respond or appear before the joint committee to provide an explanation.

“In view of this continued defiance, the Committee will be compelled to exercise its constitutional powers to compel Mr. Olayemi Cardoso to appear before it,” the statement warned.

 


Kindly share this post
Continue Reading

Trending