The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has announced a proactive approach to combating financial crimes, freezing suspicious funds within 72 hours of detection and intensifying its focus on cryptocurrency wallets. Chairman Ola Olukoyede disclosed this on Monday, August 31, during a media interactive session in Abuja marking his third year in office.
Proactive Monitoring and Rapid Freezing
Olukoyede explained that the commission is shifting from a reactive stance to one that identifies suspicious transactions early, preventing funds from being moved beyond investigators' reach. To this end, the EFCC has established the Fraud Risk Assessment and Control Department (FRAC) to monitor financial movements and intervene when transactions raise suspicion.
“Why must we be waiting for money to be stolen? When we see money moving suspiciously, we move in and freeze. Pending 72 hours, we ask: where is this money going?” Olukoyede said. He cited a case where funds were allegedly moved from a local government account to a private company and then into cryptocurrency wallets, with the fraud risk department detecting the transactions and freezing the funds for 72 hours to establish their destination and purpose. He did not identify the local government, company, or state involved.
Crypto Wallets Under Scrutiny
The movement of suspected illicit funds into cryptocurrency has become a growing challenge, Olukoyede noted, because digital assets can be transferred rapidly and may be harder to trace to conventional assets. He alleged that some public officials now move funds into cryptocurrency wallets within 24 hours, sometimes using younger people to facilitate the transactions.
“At the press of a button, you can collapse the entire banking industry in Nigeria. Most of the data we are investigating now, you can’t trace tangible assets to them,” he said. To counter this, the commission has developed greater capacity to trace cryptocurrency wallets connected to virtual asset platforms operating within Nigeria.
Licensed Platforms and National Confiscation Wallet
Olukoyede disclosed that about 40 virtual asset platforms have been licensed in Nigeria, giving investigators greater ability to follow transactions involving registered platforms. The commission is also working with other government agencies on the management of confiscated virtual assets, and a national confiscation wallet has been established to hold cryptocurrencies seized by the government.
“One of the problems we used to have was: where do you put confiscated virtual assets? Today we have a national wallet that we put them into,” he said.
Civil Asset Forfeiture and Recovery Figures
The EFCC is also relying more heavily on civil asset forfeiture, using Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud Act to pursue assets directly rather than waiting for lengthy criminal trials. “This is faster and quicker than criminal trial. We don’t have to wait 10, 15 years when witnesses die and assets are dissipated,” Olukoyede said. Under the civil process, the commission can take action against an asset while the person claiming ownership is required to explain its source.
The chairman also disclosed the establishment of a Process and Proceeds Management Directorate to oversee forfeited assets, with professionals appointed to manage different categories of assets. Proceeds from disposed assets are handled through relevant government processes. In a separate account of his tenure, Olukoyede said the commission recovered more than ₦1.23 trillion and $684.48 million between October 2023 and June 2026, alongside recoveries in pounds and euros.
Olukoyede called for stronger policies and institutional reforms to close loopholes that allow public and private funds to be diverted. “The most effective system is not law enforcement. It is the policy regime, institutional reforms that close leakages,” he said.
