Fraudsters stole N134.48bn from banks, customers in six years – CBN

Banks and their customers lost a combined N134.48 billion to fraud between 2020 and 2025, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) Nigeria Payments System Vision 2028 document.

The report, obtained from the apex bank’s website, showed that attempted fraud during the six-year period amounted to N187.79 billion, while actual losses stood at N134.48 billion.

The losses were recorded across various payment channels, including over-the-counter transactions, Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), cheques, e-commerce platforms, Internet banking, mobile banking, Point of Sale (PoS) terminals and other electronic payment platforms.

An analysis of the data showed that fraud losses rose steadily from N11.61 billion in 2020 to N12.77 billion in 2021 and N14.32 billion in 2022. The figure increased further to N17.67 billion in 2023 before surging sharply to N52.26 billion in 2024, the highest annual loss recorded during the period.

The 2024 losses accounted for nearly 39 per cent of the total amount lost to fraud between 2020 and 2025, underscoring the growing challenge facing banks, payment service providers and customers.

Similarly, attempted fraud increased from N13.26 billion in 2020 to N14.48 billion in 2021, N16.41 billion in 2022 and N19.72 billion in 2023 before jumping to N86.36 billion in 2024. However, both attempted fraud and actual losses declined in 2025 to N37.57 billion and N25.85 billion, respectively.

According to the report, the sharp increase in fraud losses in 2024 was largely driven by a major internal fraud case involving N30 billion.

“Fraud amounts in Internet Banking, Mobile and POS channels declined, yet overall losses rose by 196 per cent, primarily due to a major internal case involving N30bn. Web fraud incidents also increased by 169 per cent,” the document stated.

The CBN noted that a single large-scale fraud incident could significantly distort industry-wide figures despite improvements recorded in several digital payment channels.

The report further revealed that fraud patterns varied across payment platforms over the years. In 2021, web-based fraud declined by 43 per cent, but losses still increased due to a 276 per cent rise in PoS-related fraud incidents.

In 2022, fraud losses rose by 12 per cent, driven mainly by major incidents affecting corporate accounts, while ATM fraud surged by more than 2,000 per cent despite declines in mobile, PoS and web channels.

Fraud losses in 2023 also increased by 23 per cent, largely due to a spike in e-commerce-related fraud cases.

“Fraud losses rose by 23 per cent, largely due to a spike in e-Commerce incidents, which escalated by 1,961 per cent. Mobile, POS and Web channels recorded moderate increases,” the CBN said.

Despite the persistent threat, the apex bank said the industry recorded significant improvement in 2025 due to stricter regulations, enhanced collaboration and improved monitoring systems.

“In 2025, electronic payment fraud declined by 51 per cent, demonstrating the success of stricter regulations, increased industry cooperation, enhanced prevention strategies and improved monitoring,” the report added.

The findings come amid Nigeria’s rapid shift toward electronic payments, with instant transfers, mobile banking, fintech applications and digital wallets becoming increasingly central to commercial activities.

In the foreword to the Payments System Vision 2028 document, CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, said Nigeria’s payments ecosystem has evolved into one of the most dynamic and innovative globally, driven by real-time payments, digital adoption and fintech-led transformation.

He, however, stressed that the next phase of growth would require stronger resilience, improved cybersecurity measures, enhanced consumer protection and robust fraud-monitoring systems.

Under the Payments System Vision 2028 framework, the CBN plans to prioritise security, trust, innovation, interoperability, inclusion and collaboration while strengthening regulatory oversight and deploying emerging technologies to tackle increasingly sophisticated fraud threats.