Union Bank of Nigeria Plc is scrambling to recover a staggering N9.3 billion stolen from customers’ accounts in a sophisticated fraud linked to a major system breach.
The incident, which occurred on March 23, 2025, has triggered a legal battle as the bank races to freeze accounts suspected of receiving the illicit funds.
How the Fraud Unfolded
Court documents reveal that Union Bank detected unauthorized transfers from multiple customer accounts, with the stolen money funneled into 54 different financial institutions.
The bank quickly filed a lawsuit (FHC/L/CS/629/2025) at the Federal High Court in Lagos, seeking an emergency order to block further withdrawals from the implicated accounts.
In a sworn affidavit, Oluwasegun Falola, Union Bank’s Head of E-Fraud Investigations, confirmed that the fraudsters exploited a critical system glitch, siphoning funds in small, deliberate transactions to avoid detection.
“The money was moved in trickles across numerous accounts, making it difficult to immediately trace,” Falola stated.
Bank Takes Legal Action
Union Bank’s legal team, led by A. Adedoyin-Adeniyi, informed the court on April 2, 2025, that the stolen funds were still being actively transferred, suggesting an ongoing laundering operation.
“N9.3 billion has already been moved, and the perpetrators are still shifting money into new accounts,” Adedoyin-Adeniyi told Justice Deinde Dipeolu.
The judge granted the bank’s request for a Post No Debit (PND) order, freezing all accounts linked to the fraud pending further investigation.
A Recurring Challenge for Union Bank
This scandal comes just 15 months after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) dissolved Union Bank’s former board and management over alleged governance failures.
The current leadership, led by MD Yetunde Oni, now faces intense scrutiny as customers demand answers.
