Banking

Jaiz Bank ATM Custodian in Trouble for N33.8b Fraud

Published

7 years ago

11/01/2019

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

A branch Automated Teller Machine (ATM) officer with Jaiz Bank, Mr Alfa Ibrahim, has been arraigned before Justice Darius Khobo of the Kaduna State High Court.

The suspect was taken to court by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on January 9, 2019 on a one-count charge bordering on dishonesty to the tune of N33.8 million.

The money was said to belong to Jaiz Bank and was meant to be “loaded” into the bank’s ATM, but allegedly converted by the accused person to his personal use.

“That you, Alfa Ibrahim, while being Automated Teller Machine officer with Ja’iz Bank Plc, sometime in December 2017 in Kaduna within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did dishonesty take the sum of N33,810,000 being the property of Ja’iz Bank without its consent and with intent of permanently depriving it of the said amount, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 270 of the Penal Code Law Kaduna State, 2017 and punishable under Section 271 of the same Law,” the count read.

However, when this charge was read to the suspect, he pleaded “not guilty” and the prosecuting counsel, Mr Esmond Garba, thereafter, urged the court to fix a date for commencement of trial, and to remand the defendant in prison custody.

Defence counsel, Kaile Yusuf, however, asked the court to grant his client bail, arguing that Mr Ibrahim was on administrative bail by the EFCC and “he did not violate the bail conditions”.

While adjourning to February 14, 2019 Justice Khobo granted him bail in the sum of N10 million, and one surety in like sum who must be a resident within Kaduna metropolis.

Similarly, Muhammad Nalami was also arraigned before Justice Khobo on a two-count charge bordering on “conspiracy, breach of trust and fraud” to the tune of N17 million belonging to Niroy Nigeria Limited.

Nalami was alleged to have connived with Hafeez Adamu (currently at large), and collected N17, 054,000 from the company, for the supply of grains, but he failed to deliver on the goods. Efforts to get a refund also proved abortive.

Count two reads: “That you Muhammed Nalami and Hafeez Ya’u Adamu sometime in June 2017 in Kaduna within the Kaduna Judicial Division of the High Court did dishonestly misappropriate or convert to your own use the sum of N17, 045,000 property of Niroy Nigeria Limited meant for purchase of three trucks and 990 bags of white sorghum grains, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 293 of the Penal Code Law Kaduna State, and punishable under Section 294 of the same Law”.

He pleaded “not guilty” to the charges.

Prosecuting counsel, Esmond Garba urged the court to fix a date for commencement of trial and asked the court to remand him in prison custody.

Defence counsel, Y.Y. Mai’adashi made an oral application for the bail of his client. The application was, however, opposed by the prosecution.

Justice Khobo, thereafter, adjourned to February 14, 2019 for “commencement of trial” and ordered the accused to be remanded in prison custody pending perfection of bail application.

In a related development, Abubakar Liman Ibrahim and his company, Infaq Global Investment Limited, were also on January 9, 2019 arraigned before the trial judge on a four-count charge bordering on false pretence and issuance of dud cheque to the tune of over N27, 000, 000 (Twenty Seven Million Naira).

Abubakar was alleged by Alkasim Rilwanu, to have defrauded him in N46, 551,000 business deal, in which he was to supply baking flour, oil and bags of rice.

Rilwanu alleged that after supplying the goods, he was paid N11.5 million and another N7,470,000 leaving a balance of over N27 million. However, Abubakar issued four separate Zenith Bank cheques for the balance, which were returned unpaid by the bank. Efforts to get back the money proved abortive.

He pleaded “not guilty” to the charges.

Prosecuting counsel, Esmond Garba, thereafter, asked the court to fix a date for commencement of trial while praying the accused be remanded in prison custody pending trial.

Counsel for the defence, Y.Y. Gwazawa, moved the motion for bail dated January 7, 2019, which was served on the prosecution on January 8, 2019.

Garba, however, raised objection to the application on the “basis of the magnitude of the offence”.

Justice Khobo, granted bail to the defendant in the sum of N5 million and one surety in like sum who must be a resident within Kaduna metropolis, and adjourned to February 11, 2019 for “hearing”.

Banking

Secure IT, StockMed, 18 Others Make Wema Bank Hackaholics 6.0 Top 20 List

Published

4 days ago

18/12/2025

Modupe Gbadeyanka

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

The six edition of the Hackaholics of Wema Bank Plc has produced 20 top finalists shared equally between two streams, Ideathon and Hackathon.

The Hackathon finalists are Rapid DEV, Secure IT, Neurafeed, Trust Lock Babcock, Pulse Track, IlluminiTrust, Trust Lock FUTA, Fix Fraud AI, KASH Flow and VOC AI.

The Ideathon finalists include PLOY, Fertitude, VarsityScape, Mama ALERT, StockMed, Chao, All Arbitrate, FarmSlate, Sane AI and Cycle X.

They emerged after a two-day pre-pitch held on December 16 and 17, 2025, for the grand finale slated for Friday, December 19, 2025.

They grand finale of Hackaholics 6.0 will convene the top players in Africa’s tech and innovation ecosystem, creating an avenue for these finalists to not only put their creativity to the ultimate test but also give their solutions visibility to potential investors for additional funding opportunities beyond the prizes to be won.

The prizes to be won for the Ideathon include N25 million for the winner, N20 million for the first runner-up, N15 million for the second runner-up and N5 million each for two women-led teams.

In the Hackathon category, the first to fourth-place winners will receive N20 million, N15 million, N10 million and N5 million, respectively.

The pre-pitch saw the top 43 contenders battle in a game of innovation and problem solving, presenting compelling pitches for a chance to make it to top 10 in their respective streams.

After a rigorous stretch of pitches and presentations, the top 20 emerged, securing their spot in the grand finale of Hackaholics 6.0.

“Hackaholics started off as a hackathon and morphed into an ideation. For Hackaholics 6.0, the sixth edition, we decided to give both the builders of new solutions and the refiners of existing ones, an opportunity to make meaningful impact.

“For us at Wema Bank, we understand that innovation isn’t just building from scratch. Sometimes, it’s looking at what exists and developing new ways to optimise that and create more efficiency. This is the idea behind our two-stream Ideathon-Hackathon structure.

“Every year, Hackaholics shows us just how eager and motivated Nigerian youth are when it comes to exploring creativity and innovation, and we are honoured to be the institution that provides them with the platform and resources to put this drive to good use.

“We toured seven cities, indulged 1,460 participants and discovered hundreds of remarkable ideas; some of which needed some refining and some of which deserved to move to the next stage.

“For those who needed to go back to the drawing board, we provided useful guidance and for the top contenders, we were able to shortlist to the top 43, who proceeded to the pre-pitch. To every participant, Wema Bank is proud of you. This is just the beginning,” the chief executive of Wema Bank, Mr Moruf Oseni, said.

Banking

Customs to Penalise Banks for Delayed Revenue Remittance

Published

4 days ago

18/12/2025

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) says it will enforce penalties against designated banks that delay the remittance of customs revenue, in a move aimed at strengthening transparency and safeguarding government earnings.

This was disclosed in a statement on the NCS official account on X, formerly known as Twitter and signed by its spokesman, Mr Abdullahi Maiwada, who said the delays undermine the efficiency, transparency, and integrity of government revenue administration.

“The Nigeria Customs Service has noted instances of delayed remittance of customs revenue by some designated banks following reconciliation of collections processed through the B’odogwu platform,” the statement read.

“Such delays constitute a breach of remittance obligations and negatively impact the efficiency, transparency, and integrity of government revenue administration.

“In line with the provisions of the Service Level Agreement executed between the Nigeria Customs Service and designated banks, the Service hereby notifies stakeholders of the commencement of enforcement actions against banks found to be in default of agreed remittance timelines.”

Mr Maiwada disclosed that any bank that fails to remit collected Customs revenue within the prescribed timeline will be liable to penalty interest calculated at three per cent above the prevailing Nigerian Interbank Offered Rate for the period of the delay.

He added that affected banks would be formally notified of the delayed amounts, the applicable penalty, and the deadline for settlement.

“Accordingly, any designated bank that fails to remit collected Customs revenue within the prescribed period shall be liable to penalty interest calculated at three per cent above the prevailing Nigerian Interbank Offered Rate for the duration of the delay.

“Affected banks will receive formal notifications indicating the delayed amount, applicable penalty, and the timeline for settlement,” the statement read.

Banking

First Bank Deputy MD Sells Off 11.8m First Holdco Shares Worth N366.9m

Published

4 days ago

18/12/2025

Aduragbemi Omiyale

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

The deputy managing director of First Bank of Nigeria (FBN) Limited, Mr Ini Ebong, has offloaded some shares of FBN Holdings Plc, the parent firm of the banking institution.

A regulatory notice from the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited confirmed the development on Thursday.

It was disclosed that the transaction occurred on Friday, December 12, 2025, on the floor of the stock exchange.

The sale involved about 11.8 million shares, precisely 11,783,333 units traded at N31.14 per share, amounting to about N366.9 million.

Mr Ebong, who studied Architecture from University of Ife and obtained Bachelor and Master of Science degrees, became the DMD of First Bank in June 2024. Prior to this appointment, he was Executive Director, Treasury and International Banking since January 2022.

He was previously the Group Executive, Treasury and International Banking, a position he held since 2016 after serving as the bank’s Treasurer from 2011 to 2016.

Before joining First Bank, he was the Head of African Fixed Income and Local Markets Trading, Renaissance Securities Nigeria Limited, the Nigerian registered subsidiary of Renaissance Capital. He also worked with Citigroup for 14 years as Country Treasurer and Sales and Trading Business Head.

He has a passion for market development and has worked actively to drive change and internationalisation of the Nigerian financial markets: foreign exchange, fixed income and securities.

He has worked closely with regulatory bodies such as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Debt Management Office (DMO) in assisting with the development of fresh monetary and foreign exchange policies, to broaden and deepen markets and open them up to international practices.

At various times he has facilitated and delivered courses and seminars on a wide variety of subjects covering Money Markets, Securities and Foreign exchange trading and market risk management subjects to regulators, corporate customers, banks and market participants.