Daud Olatunji
The Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit has uncovered new tactics allegedly being deployed by terrorist financiers to conceal the identities of individuals controlling illicit funds, including the use of women’s bank accounts, pre-registered SIM cards and telephone lines linked to deceased persons.
The disclosure was contained in the NFIU’s 2025 Annual Report, which identified weak customer identification systems, disconnected SIM-Bank Verification Number linkages and proxy accounts as emerging channels facilitating financial crimes and terrorist financing in Nigeria.
According to the report, some terrorist financiers exploit gaps in the connection between mobile telephone identities and bank accounts by using SIM cards that are not registered in the names of the actual users of the accounts.
The agency said the SIM cards could be pre-registered, linked to deceased persons or registered in the names of individuals who serve as gender-based proxies.
The NFIU explained that the practice makes it difficult for investigators to establish the identities of those actually controlling suspicious transactions.
It said the use of unrelated telephone numbers for mobile banking, transaction alerts and other financial activities could sever the trail linking illicit funds to their real controllers.
The report stated that when suspicious transactions are investigated, tracing the associated telephone number could lead authorities to an unrelated person, thereby allowing the actual financier to remain hidden.
The financial intelligence agency also identified the use of proxy bank accounts as another method employed to distance terrorist financiers from illicit funds.
It said accounts were sometimes opened in the names of women but secretly controlled by male commanders, logistics managers or other operatives who use them to move money.
The NFIU said wives, sisters and female associates could be used as fronts because terrorist financiers may perceive such accounts as less likely to attract official scrutiny.
The agency described the practice as “identity laundering,” noting that the actual operators could possess the ATM cards, mobile banking credentials and personal identification numbers attached to the accounts.
It, however, noted that some women whose accounts are allegedly used as proxies may be unaware of the nature and volume of transactions conducted through them.
The NFIU said the arrangement creates an additional layer between the actual operators and the accounts used for transferring illicit funds, making it more difficult for law enforcement agencies to identify the ultimate beneficiaries.
The agency also raised concerns over the exploitation of SIM cards registered to deceased persons.
It said such SIMs, alongside pre-registered telephone lines and other identity proxies, could be used to bypass safeguards designed to connect mobile communications with verified financial identities.
The NFIU identified disconnected SIM-BVN linkages, weak customer identification procedures and limited oversight of some digital financial services as emerging enablers of financial crime recorded in 2025.
The findings come amid efforts by Nigerian authorities to strengthen the connection between citizens’ digital identities, telephone numbers and financial accounts.
The National Identity Management Commission announced in July 2025 that telecommunications operators had migrated to its NINAuth platform, designed to improve National Identification Number verification and strengthen Nigeria’s digital identity system.
The Central Bank of Nigeria also directed banks and other financial institutions in January 2026 to strengthen measures against emerging electronic fraud threats, including SIM-swap attacks, social engineering and insider compromise.
The apex bank stressed the need for effective Know Your Customer and Know Your Device processes supported by real-time validation against NIN and BVN databases.
In March 2026, the CBN introduced additional security requirements for mobile banking and digital payment services, including real-time validation of online account openings and account reactivations against BVN and NIN databases.
Financial institutions were also required to deploy systems capable of detecting suspicious transactions in real time.
The Securities and Exchange Commission has also moved to strengthen monitoring of terrorism and proliferation financing within the capital market.
On August 12, 2026, the commission directed all capital market operators under its regulation to subscribe to the Nigeria Sanctions Alerts system.
The system provides alerts on individuals and entities designated for terrorism financing and proliferation financing.
The SEC directed operators to immediately freeze funds and other economic resources belonging to designated persons and entities, report such actions to the Nigeria Sanctions Committee and file suspicious transaction reports with the NFIU.
The NFIU said the growing reliance on technology-enabled financial channels, identity proxies and weaknesses in digital identity verification underscored the need for stronger controls across the financial system.
It stressed that closing gaps between mobile identities, BVNs, NINs and bank account ownership would be critical to enabling financial institutions and security agencies to trace and disrupt illicit financial flows.
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