Nigeria's Crypto Boom Under Pressure as EFCC Exposes $104 Million Laundering Scheme
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in Nigeria has uncovered a massive cryptocurrency laundering scheme that exploited weak regulatory frameworks, compromised domestic banks and fintech platforms. According to officials, the scam involved a staggering $104 million laundered through cryptocurrency transactions.
The EFCC found that a web of commercial banks, six prominent fintech firms, and microfinance institutions failed to enforce Know Your Customer (KYC) and Customer Due Diligence (CDD) protocols, allowing transnational fraudsters to execute borderless, untraceable theft. One scheme involved a highly orchestrated airline ticket discount fraud.
The illicit funds were then rapidly converted into stablecoins and Bitcoin, rendering them virtually invisible to traditional financial tracking mechanisms. Over 700 individuals were compromised in this specific node alone, resulting in immediate losses exceeding $651 million before the funds vanished onto the blockchain.
Nigeria's government has initiated a sweeping legislative and structural crackdown in response to the escalating crisis. President Bola Tinubu recently enacted the Presidential Executive Order on Virtual Assets Coordination, 2026, which establishes a centralized regulatory framework to harmonize oversight across the nation's fragmented virtual assets sector.