By Abiodun JIMOH
Union Bank of Nigeria Plc is at the center of a major cyber fraud scandal after a security breach in its core banking system led to the unauthorized withdrawal of N9.3 billion from customers’ accounts.
Court documents reveal that on March 23, 2025, over N9.3 billion—precisely N9,329,322,870—was fraudulently transferred from the bank to various accounts spread across 53 financial institutions in Nigeria. The incident, described as one of the most serious in the bank’s history, occurred just 15 months after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) dismissed the bank’s previous management team over governance lapses.
Union Bank, now under the leadership of Managing Director Yetunde Oni, is seeking urgent legal intervention to recover the stolen funds. In a suit marked FHC/L/CS/629/2025 filed before the Federal High Court in Lagos, the bank requested a preservative order directing the 53 respondent financial institutions to freeze the accounts that received the funds and facilitate their return.
In an affidavit submitted by Oluwasegun Falola, Head of the E-Fraud Investigations Department, the bank described the fraud as a result of an operational glitch that was exploited to siphon funds from customers’ accounts in small, discreet transactions. Falola noted that after identifying the breach, the bank swiftly contacted the implicated institutions to stop further movement of the funds.
“The funds were fraudulently transferred from customer accounts due to a system failure,” Falola said. “Investigations revealed that the money moved in trickles into several accounts, from which it was further dispersed to other accounts controlled by the respondents.”
Union Bank’s legal counsel, A. Adedoyin-Adeniyi, told the court that the stolen funds were still being moved even after initial alerts were raised. “We now have more people involved in moving the funds,” the lawyer said during a court appearance on April 2.
Justice Deinde Dipeolu, presiding over the matter, granted the motion ex parte, allowing the bank to begin efforts to block and recover the funds.
The breach has renewed concerns about the integrity of digital banking infrastructure in Nigeria. Financial analysts argue that legacy systems, insufficient investment in cybersecurity, and weak interbank surveillance have left several institutions vulnerable to similar threats.
Despite repeated requests, Union Bank declined to comment as of press time.
The situation underscores rising risks within the financial system as digital banking expands in scale and complexity—raising critical questions about systemic preparedness and consumer protection in the event of future breaches.
