In Nigeria’s banking sector, customers have experienced significant financial losses due to fraud over the past five years, amounting to a staggering N59.3 billion.
According to data compiled from SBM Intelligence, the value lost to fraud has been on a consistent increase over the years.
However, the number of fraud cases which had peaked in 2021 has begun to decline.
The rise in fraud value contrasts with the fluctuating trend in cases, with losses escalating steadily over the years.
In 2019, losses were reported at N2.96 billion, skyrocketing to N17.67 billion in 2023. Notably, social engineering emerged as a prevalent tactic in 2023, accounting for N9.38 billion of the losses, surpassing previous years’ figures.
Other notable methods include website and server hacking, which saw losses rise sharply to N2.44 billion, and an increase in losses due to robbery, pin compromise, internal collusion, fake assistance, phishing, lack of two-factor authentication, and SMShing.
SBM Intelligence highlights that while there has been a reduction in the number of incidents from the peak in 2021, the financial impact of fraud has intensified.
This suggests that fraudsters have become more adept at evading detection and executing high-value fraudulent activities within the sector.