The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has told the House of Representatives that it opened two domiciliary accounts for the alleged Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) based on a formal directive from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF).

The disclosure was made during the inaugural sitting of the House of Representatives ad hoc committee investigating the legal basis, operations and budgetary inclusion of the PFIPC.

Representing the CBN Governor, the bank’s Director of Banking Services, Hamisu Abdullahi, told lawmakers that the apex bank received a mandate dated July 29, 2025, from the OAGF and subsequently opened two foreign currency accounts—a United States dollar account and a Pound Sterling account—on July 30, 2025.

According to him, the CBN followed all internal verification procedures before opening the accounts, as requests relating to accounts for Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) are processed only upon authorisation from the OAGF.

He, however, clarified that the accounts have remained inactive since they were opened because the PFIPC did not provide the authorised signatories required to activate them.

Abdullahi further informed the committee that the accounts have maintained a zero balance and have never recorded any financial transaction.

He said there had been no foreign exchange allocations, remittances, deposits, withdrawals, inflows or outflows associated with the accounts since their creation.

The hearing comes amid an ongoing investigation into the PFIPC, following allegations surrounding its legal status, operations and inclusion in the 2026 Appropriation Act.

The controversy has also drawn the attention of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), which recently questioned the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, over allegations made by the council’s self-acclaimed Director-General, Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi.

Adeyemi had alleged that he paid ₦400 million to secure his appointment and claimed that Gbajabiamila demanded a share of the council’s proposed ₦27.3 billion take-off grant. The Chief of Staff has denied the allegations and instituted a ₦15 billion defamation suit against Adeyemi.

The House committee is expected to continue its investigation into the circumstances surrounding the establishment, operations and funding of the alleged council.