Nigerian Banks Lose N5bn To Fraud In 9 Months – NIBSS

The Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System Plc ,NIBSS, has reported that Nigerian banks recorded over N5 billion loss to fraudsters between January and September 2020.

The figure was contained in the just published NIBSS Insight Report titled ‘Fraud in the Nigerian Financial Services’.

The NIBSS reported that on a global scale, fraudulent activities resulted in losses amounting to about $42 billion out of which approximately 39 per cent were perpetrated by external parties while 37 per cent were perpetrated by internal parties.

It expressed some concern about the rising cases of frauds in the Nigerian banking sector as well as the associated losses.

It stated: “On a global scale, fraudulent activities have resulted in losses amounting to about $42 billion. Approximately 39 per cent are perpetrated by external parties while 37 per cent are perpetrated by internal parties

“Driving deeper in Nigerian industry data, the actual figures reported by the industry are quite striking.
This year, about 91 per cent of all fraud attempts as of September have resulted in a total loss; and more than N5bn was lost as a result of fraud within the period.

“This represents financial institutions with an opportunity to protect their investments; as well as attract customers by offering increased artificial protection and the ability to recover lost funds more easily”, the NIBSS report said.

This is even as its anti-fraud portal data showed that 56 percent of all reported fraud attempts during the period under review were carried out using social engineering.