The digital shadows over Nigeria’s banking halls grew a little lighter last year. For years, a quiet war has been raging behind the glowing screens of smartphones and ATMs across the country.
Every tap, click, and transfer was a potential battlefield, with faceless cybercriminals working tirelessly to siphon away the hard-earned money of everyday Nigerians.
By 2024, the attackers were winning, breaching digital defenses to steal a staggering ₦52.26 billion. It felt like an unstoppable tide.
But then, the ecosystem fought back.
Banks tightened their algorithms, fintechs erected stronger digital fortresses, and everyday users grew wiser to the tricks of the trade.
According to the latest data from the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS), this collective resistance paid off dramatically in 2025.
In a stunning plot twist for the fraudsters, digital payment fraud plummeted by 51 percent over the course of twelve months. The bleeding was effectively cut in half, with losses dropping to ₦25.85 billion.
While the war is far from over, and billions are still being chased through the digital ether, the narrative has shifted. Nigeria’s financial ecosystem proved that it is no longer an easy target; it’s a system that learns, adapts, and strikes back.
The figures were disclosed by Premier Oiwoh, the managing director and chief executive officer of NIBSS in Lagos, recently.
Addressing participants at the event themed ‘Shrinking Fraud Losses With ISO 20022 & Identity Management,’ Oiwoh noted that while the number of fraud cases has steadily declined over the past five years, the value of losses remains the key concern.
“Looking at industry fraud over the past five years, the number of cases has declined significantly. While case counts are important, what matters more is the value. In 2023, actual losses stood at about ₦17.67 billion.
In 2024, losses rose to ₦52.26 billion, largely driven by a single fraud incident of ₦31.1 billion involving one entity. In 2025, losses dropped significantly,” he said.
Data presented at the forum showed that fraud incidents fell from 123,918 in 2021 to 67,518 in 2025, with a small four per cent decline in the last year.
Geographically, Lagos accounted for 63.43 per cent of fraud activity, reflecting its role as Nigeria’s commercial hub.
Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), recorded 3.12 per cent, while Ogun, Rivers, and Delta States contributed between 2.09 per cent and 2.51 per cent of total fraud volume.
E-commerce and internet banking remain the channels most affected, followed by point-of-sale, mobile, and web platforms. Oiwoh highlighted social engineering, particularly insider abuse, as the most prevalent fraud technique.
“Insider involvement is high, and recent investigations have confirmed this. Services such as SIM swap fraud, account compromise, and phishing continue to evolve. Awareness remains critical, as many victims are still easily deceived,” he said.
The NIBSS boss stressed the importance of institutional controls, monitoring staff activity, and coordinated industry action.
According to Oiwoh, joint industry measures last year prevented about ₦20 billion in potential losses. Despite this, fraud reporting fell by 34 per cent in the final quarter of 2025.
“While some institutions reported zero incidents, non-reporting is unacceptable.
Reporting enables tracking and investigation. In several cases investigated last year, individuals involved in fraud simply moved to other institutions because incidents were not reported,” he added.
The forum also discussed the adoption of the ISO 20022 standard and identity management systems as tools to strengthen transaction security and reduce the risk of digital payment fraud.
