CBN Headquarters Abuja
Nigerian banks and their customers lost a combined N134.48bn to fraud between 2020 and 2025, according to data contained in the CBN’s ‘Nigeria Payments System Vision 2028 document.’
The document, obtained from the apex bank’s website, showed that attempted fraud across the banking and payments ecosystem amounted to N187.79bn during the six-year period, while actual losses stood at N134.48bn.
The report revealed that the losses were recorded across several payment channels, including over-the-counter transactions, Automated Teller Machines, cheques, e-commerce platforms, internet banking, mobile banking, Point of Sale terminals, web channels and other electronic payment systems.
Analysis of the data showed that fraud losses rose consistently over the period, increasing from N11.61bn in 2020 to N12.77bn in 2021 and N14.32bn in 2022. The figure climbed further to N17.67bn in 2023 before surging to N52.26bn in 2024, the highest annual loss recorded during the period.
The 2024 loss accounted for nearly 39 per cent of the total amount lost to fraud between 2020 and 2025, highlighting the scale of the challenge facing banks, payment service providers and customers.
Attempted fraud also increased from N13.26bn in 2020 to N14.48bn in 2021, N16.41bn in 2022 and N19.72bn in 2023 before jumping sharply to N86.36bn in 2024. Both attempted fraud and actual losses, however, declined in 2025 to N37.57bn and N25.85bn respectively.
According to the CBN, the sharp increase in fraud losses recorded in 2024 was largely driven by a major internal fraud case involving N30bn.
The document stated, “Fraud amounts in Internet Banking, Mobile, and POS channels declined, yet overall losses rose by 196 per cent, primarily due to a major internal case involving N30bn. Web fraud incidents also increased by 169 per cent.”
The apex bank noted that the trend demonstrated how a single large-scale fraud incident could significantly affect industry-wide fraud statistics despite improvements recorded in several digital payment channels.
The report showed that fraud patterns evolved across payment platforms during the review period. In 2021, web-based fraud declined by 43 per cent, but overall losses increased due to a 276 per cent rise in POS fraud incidents. In 2022, fraud losses rose by 12 per cent, driven mainly by major fraud incidents involving corporate accounts, while ATM fraud surged by more than 2,000 per cent despite declines in mobile, POS and web-related fraud.
Similarly, fraud losses increased by 23 per cent in 2023, largely due to a spike in e-commerce fraud cases. The CBN said e-commerce-related incidents escalated by 1,961 per cent during the year, while mobile, POS and web channels recorded moderate increases.
Despite the persistent threat, the regulator reported significant improvement in 2025, attributing the decline in fraud losses to stricter regulations, stronger industry collaboration and enhanced monitoring systems.
“In 2025, electronic payment fraud declined by 51 per cent, demonstrating the success of stricter regulations, increased industry cooperation, enhanced prevention strategies, and improved monitoring,” the document stated.
The findings come amid rapid growth in electronic payments and financial technology adoption in Nigeria, with instant transfers, mobile banking, fintech applications and digital wallets becoming increasingly central to commercial activities.
In the foreword to the Nigeria Payments System Vision 2028, CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso said Nigeria’s payments ecosystem had become one of the most dynamic and innovative globally, driven by real-time payments, digital adoption and fintech-led transformation.
Cardoso noted that while the previous Payments System Vision 2025 framework delivered significant growth in electronic payments and digital financial services, the next phase would require stronger resilience and coordination as the ecosystem expands.
The CBN acknowledged that increased digitalisation has improved financial inclusion and reduced transaction costs but has also created new risks that require stronger cybersecurity measures, consumer protection frameworks and fraud-monitoring systems.
Under the Payments System Vision 2028, the apex bank said it would prioritise security, trust, innovation, interoperability, inclusion and collaboration while strengthening regulatory oversight, improving cyber resilience and deploying emerging technologies to combat increasingly sophisticated fraud threats.
