Calls for united action against tax evasion, profit shifting, and illicit flows
The Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Dr. Zacch Adedeji, has challenged global leaders to take urgent, collective action against rising cross-border crimes that continue to undermine revenue mobilisation and economic growth.
Delivering a keynote address at the 42nd Cambridge International Symposium on Economic Crime (CIDOEC) held at the University of Cambridge, United Kingdom, Adedeji stressed that tax crimes such as evasion, profit shifting, and transfer pricing distort fair competition, weaken national treasuries, and erode public trust.
Represented by Professor Bolaji Owasanoye, FIRS Coordinating Director of Proceeds of Crime Management and Illicit Financial Flows and former ICPC chairman, Adedeji warned that criminals exploit global trade and finance systems, moving capital faster than regulators can act.
“In a global economy where capital can move faster than law enforcement, and where digital and legal arbitrage often outpace regulation, the fight against cross-border economic crime must be both local and global—urgent and pressing,” he said.
He highlighted how multinational corporations manipulate intra-group transactions to shift profits to low-tax jurisdictions, while individuals conceal assets abroad to evade home-country obligations. Such practices, he noted, compromise the fiscal sovereignty of nations.
Adedeji outlined Nigeria’s reforms under President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which targets illicit financial flows, abuse of fuel subsidies, forex manipulation, and trade-based money laundering. He recalled that Tinubu signed four landmark tax reform bills into law on June 26, 2025, introducing over 400 changes to modernise tax administration, strengthen enforcement, and align Nigeria with global best practices.
He also announced that FIRS will transition into the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) by January 2026, expanding its mandate into fiscal crime prevention, intelligence gathering, and national security. The agency, he added, is driving a technological overhaul with AI-driven anomaly detection, real-time analytics, and a National Tax Data Warehouse to forecast revenues and detect evasion before it happens.
“Compliance must be simple for taxpayers and costly for offenders. With automation, big data analytics, and machine learning, Nigeria’s tax administration is shifting from reactive to predictive,” he stated.
The Cambridge symposium brought together about 1,000 participants from over 100 countries, including lawmakers, regulators, law enforcement, and academics, reaffirming its role as a global hub for strategies against economic crime.
Photo Caption: Chief Justice of Nigeria, Honourable Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun (left) with Professor Bolaji Owasanoye, representative of FIRS Chairman Dr. Zacch Adedeji, at the opening session of the 42nd Cambridge International Symposium on Economic Crime (CIDOEC), Jesus College, University of Cambridge, September 1, 2025.
