The report shows that attempted fraud over the period reached N187.79bn, with N134.48bn successfully lost across banking and electronic payment channels.
Losses were recorded across multiple platforms, including over-the-counter transactions, ATMs, cheques, internet banking, mobile apps, e-commerce systems, and Point of Sale terminals. The spread highlights exposure across both traditional banking and digital payment infrastructure in Nigeria.
Yearly data indicates a steady rise in losses until 2024. Fraud-related losses stood at N11.61bn in 2020, rising to N12.77bn in 2021 and N14.32bn in 2022. In 2023, losses climbed further to N17.67bn before jumping sharply to N52.26bn in 2024, the highest within the review period.
The 2024 figure accounted for about 39 percent of total losses across the six years. The CBN linked the spike largely to a single internal fraud incident valued at about N30bn, which significantly distorted the year’s overall outcome despite mixed improvements in other channels.
Attempted fraud followed a similar upward trajectory, rising from N13.26bn in 2020 to N19.72bn in 2023, before peaking at N86.36bn in 2024. In 2025, both attempted fraud and actual losses declined, with losses falling to N25.85bn and attempted fraud dropping to N37.57bn.
The 2025 improvement was associated with tighter regulatory controls, increased coordination among financial institutions, and stronger monitoring systems. Electronic payment fraud dropped by 51 percent in the same year, even as earlier periods showed shifting pressure points across channels, including spikes in POS, ATM, and e-commerce-related fraud.
Despite periodic improvements in specific areas, the data shows that fraud patterns have remained fluid, moving across channels rather than disappearing, with large-scale incidents continuing to influence overall sector losses.
