 |
| Providus Bank |
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has expanded its probe of Providus Bank and its chief executive officer, Walter Akpani with respect to an undisclosed $7 million cash deposit alleged to be derived from suspicious financial dealings.
EFCC operatives had raided the bank’s head office in Victoria Island, Lagos and arrested some officials following a tip-off from a whistleblower who notified the EFCC about unusual cash transactions at the bank’s vaults.
The cash was reportedly deposited in bricks on March 26 and 27, 2025, rather than credited into a customer account. EFCC operatives swooped on the bank unannounced and seized the recovered funds, and detained some of the bank's employees. Under interrogation, the bank's employees revealed that the funds belonged to beleaguered businesswoman and socialite Aisha Achimugu, the CEO of Ocean Gate Petroleum.
Ms Achimugu reportedly told the EFCC's operatives that she had only taken a $7 million loan from Providus Bank, which she was yet to repay. Unable to reconcile the conflicting claims, the EFCC published notices in national dailies inviting anyone with legitimate ownership of the cash to come forward. No claimant appeared, and the funds were subsequently transferred to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Sources at the EFCC said that the agency is particularly concerned about why the bank failed to flag the transaction and report it as required under the provisions of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act and the guidelines of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU).
The Nigeria Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011, requires banks to report suspicious transactions, cash deposits above N5 million for individuals and N10 million for corporate bodies, and international transfers exceeding US$10,000 to the NFIU, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), or the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The Act also mandates financial institutions to conduct due diligence on their customers and business relationships to verify identities and the nature of transactions.
The source further revealed that the probe has now been widened, with the EFCC grilling Walter Akpani and other top executives, including Olugbile Erinwusi, Chief Risk Officer, and Theresa Ekong, Chief Compliance Officer, as investigators intensify efforts to solve the riddle.
“We are tracing the origin of the fund and its intended use,” the source said. “The fact that such huge sums were physically lodged in cash into the bank’s vaults without being reported to the relevant authorities raises serious questions about compliance and intent. This is not just an oversight; it points to a systemic fraudulent scheme that we are determined to uncover and address.”
On Monday, Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Abuja, granted the EFCC’s motion for final forfeiture, ordering that the $7 million be permanently forfeited to the Federal Government as suspected proceeds of crime. EFCC counsel Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, told the court that due process had been followed since the interim forfeiture order was granted on August 27.
“My lord, since August 27, when your lordship granted the order, to date, we have not received any opposition to our application. Hence, we filed a motion for final forfeiture,” Oyedepo said.
The development has heightened scrutiny of Providus Bank’s operations and raised fresh questions about compliance with regulatory and anti-money laundering standards within Nigeria’s financial sector.