Nigeria’s bank customers lost a cumulative N134.48 billion to fraud between 2020 and 2025, according to data contained in the Central Bank of Nigeria’s recently released Nigeria Payments System Vision 2028 document.
An analysis of the report by Nairametrics shows that while fraud losses generally trended upward over the six-year period, 2024 marked a turning point with an unprecedented spike in losses before regulatory interventions and industry collaboration helped drive a significant decline in 2025.
The report revealed that attempted fraud transactions amounted to N187.79 billion during the six-year period, with fraudsters successfully siphoning N134.48 billion across banking and payment channels including ATMs, internet banking, mobile banking, point-of-sale terminals, e-commerce platforms, web channels, cheques and over-the-counter transactions.
What the report shows
The CBN data showed that fraud-related losses increased from N11.61 billion in 2020 to N12.77 billion in 2021, representing a 10% rise.
- Losses climbed further to N14.32 billion in 2022 before reaching N17.67 billion in 2023 as digital payment adoption accelerated nationwide.
- However, the most significant increase occurred in 2024 when losses surged to N52.26 billion, nearly triple the N17.67 billion recorded a year earlier.
- According to the apex bank, the spike was largely linked to a major internal fraud incident involving N30 billion, even though fraud levels in internet banking, mobile banking and POS channels had declined during the year.
The report noted that web fraud incidents also rose sharply by 169% in 2024, contributing to the overall increase in losses.
- It read, “Fraud amounts in Internet Banking, Mobile, and POS channels declined, yet overall losses rose by 196%, primarily due to a major internal case involving N30 billion. Web fraud incidents also increased by 169%”
In contrast, 2025 recorded a significant improvement. Fraud losses declined to N25.85 billion from N52.26 billion, translating to a 50.5% reduction year-on-year.
- The amount involved in attempted fraud also dropped from N86.36 billion in 2024 to N37.57 billion in 2025.
The CBN attributed the improvement to stricter regulations, enhanced monitoring systems, increased industry collaboration and stronger fraud prevention measures across the financial services sector.
Fraudsters shift tactics as payment channels evolve
Beyond the headline figures, the report highlighted how fraud patterns evolved as criminals exploited vulnerabilities across different payment channels.
- In 2021, the apex bank said web-based fraud declined by 43%, but overall losses still increased because fraud incidents through POS channels surged by 276%.
- The trend changed in 2022 when ATM-related fraud jumped by more than 2,000%, despite declines in mobile, POS and web fraud channels.
- By 2023, e-commerce emerged as the major target, with fraud incidents escalating by 1,961%, driving a 23% increase in total losses during the year.
The findings suggest that fraudsters continuously adapt their methods in response to technological changes and evolving consumer payment behaviour, forcing financial institutions to strengthen controls across multiple channels simultaneously rather than focusing on a single threat vector.
Cardoso, Abdullahi push secure digital payments vision
Against the backdrop of rising fraud risks, the CBN’s Payments System Vision 2028 places cybersecurity, consumer protection and risk management at the centre of the country’s digital payments strategy.
In the document, CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso said the framework is designed to create a payments ecosystem that is secure, inclusive and resilient while supporting innovation and economic growth.
- According to him, a modern and trusted payments system remains fundamental to financial stability, competitiveness and broader economic development. He added that the vision prioritises stronger regulatory and supervisory frameworks, deeper collaboration among stakeholders and enhanced infrastructure capable of supporting future payment innovations.
- Similarly, the CBN’s Deputy Governor for Corporate Services, Dr Muhammad Sani Abdullahi, said the implementation of the Payments System Vision 2028 would leverage technology and global best practices to strengthen Nigeria’s payment landscape.
Abdullahi noted that initiatives such as contactless payments, open banking, regulatory sandboxes and the Central Bank Digital Currency would be expanded under the framework, while emerging technologies would be deployed to improve security, interoperability and user experience across payment platforms.
He added that sustained collaboration among banks, fintechs, regulators and payment service providers would be critical to building a payments ecosystem that is innovative, resilient and capable of supporting Nigeria’s broader economic transformation.
What you should know
Nairametrics earlier reported that financial institutions in Nigeria lost N52.26 billion to fraud in 2024, according to a report by the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS).
This was a significant increase of N34.59 billion compared to the N17.67 billion recorded in 2023.
Although the annual fraud count reported decreased by 31%, from 101,624 in 2020 to 70,111 in 2024, the amount lost to fraud grew by 350%, rising from N11.61 billion to N52.26 billion within the same period.
