The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has issued a public warning about an alarming rise in fraudulent foreign currency transfer claims, urging Nigerians to be cautious of falsified SWIFT documents used to support such allegations.
In a statement signed by the Acting Director of Corporate Communications, Mrs. Hakama Sidi Ali, the apex bank disclosed that it has been inundated with complaints from private individuals, law firms, government agencies, and entities alleging that foreign funds transferred to their accounts remain uncredited. However, investigations have revealed that many of these claims are backed by fake SWIFT MT103 forms and acknowledgment copies, which cannot be verified on the SWIFT network, indicating that the transfers never occurred.
The statement read:
“Recently, the Central Bank of Nigeria has been inundated with claims… that foreign currency funds allegedly transferred to them by foreign entities have yet to be credited to their accounts… The requests are usually supported with fake documents such as SWIFT MT103, SWIFT Ack copy, etc.”
The CBN clarified that it does not provide correspondent banking services for Nigerian banks or hold accounts for private businesses. It emphasized that claims suggesting foreign inflows are “trapped” in the CBN are both false and deceptive.
“For the avoidance of doubt, we wish to state emphatically that the CBN neither provides correspondent banking services for Nigerian banks in foreign payments nor maintains accounts for private business entities,” the statement said.
The apex bank outlined the correct procedure for addressing genuine cases of unreceived foreign funds. It advised beneficiaries to have the sender contact their bank to issue a tracer to locate or recall the funds, rather than escalating the matter to the CBN or law enforcement agencies.
This warning comes amidst a wave of fraudulent activities targeting individuals and organizations involved in foreign transactions. The CBN urged the public to remain vigilant and avoid falling victim to schemes involving fake SWIFT messages and unverified transfer claims.
