70% of banking fraud in Nigeria has insider connection – EFCC

Most banking frauds are impossible without insider’s collaboration, Mr Bawa Usman Katungun, has said.

Katungun, who is the Zonal Head of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in charge of Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara States, made this known during a meeting with the various bank’s compliance officers in Sokoto.

The EFCC Head, who decried that their Commission often encounter delay getting response to investigation letters to the various banks, appealed to the financial institutions to collaborate with them towards curtailing money laundering, financing of terrorist groups and other illicit flows of money.

According to Katungun, the meeting was in response to the directive of the EFCC boss, Mr Abdulrashed Bawa, which is one of his numerous strategies in fighting all manners of corruption.

This according to him, “It is to ensure that fraudsters don’t get away with proceed of their crimes undetected. And towards achieving this, we are appealing to all the banks to facilitate better working relationship with the anti graft agency”.

Giving advise on one of the ways of tracking down illicit finance, Mr Bawa Usman Katungun, urged banks in Sokoto State to put more effort towards setting up Special Control Unit Against Money Laundering (SCUML).

Speaking on why banks should collaborate with the EFCC in the investigation, Katungun said, “investigation gives you the opportunity to know how it happened and the best way to stop it”

While expressing reservation about the idea of opening banks accounts with mere phone numbers, Katungun stressed that nearly 40 percent of Americans do not have account, hence it is not very compulsory for everybody in Nigeria to have accounts.

Bawa admonished banks in Sokoto State to strictly monitor the activities of money launderers..He also revealed that whatever regulation that comes from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) does not supersede the money laundering act.

The Zonal Head of EFCC also insisted that banks should strictly monitor activities of mobile money agents otherwise operating as e-POS in the State.

Reacting, one of the participants, Jimoh Jamiu from Fidelity bank, noted that the banks are trying their best towards ensuring that they help in combating money laundering activities.