The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ola Olukoyede, has raised the alarm that some corrupt Nigerian politicians are now hiding their illicit wealth in cryptocurrencies to evade scrutiny and detection by anti-graft agencies.
The EFCC boss said the agency had uncovered a growing trend where fraudulent public officials now used cryptocurrency wallets to stash stolen public funds and conduct illicit transactions.
Olukoyede made the revelation on Thursday at an event commemorating Africa Anti-Corruption Day.
The event was held simultaneously and monitored newsmen in Abuja, Lagos and Ibadan, Oyo State.
Other speakers at the event lamented that Nigerians usually fell victim to crypto fraud, including the recent CBEX scam, where Nigerians lost over N1.3tn.
Olukoyede warned that while the rise of virtual assets had transformed financial transactions globally, it had also created new avenues for money laundering and financial crimes.
He added that the EFCC was not helpless in the face of the sophisticated schemes, noting that proactive training and intelligence sharing had enabled the commission to identify and investigate such cases.
At the Lagos event, Olukoyede, represented by the Chief of Staff/Lagos Zonal Director, Lagos Zonal Directorate 1, C. E. Michael Nzekwe, said virtual assets had become a dangerous tool in the hands of fraudsters and dishonest public officials.
He warned that virtual assets fraud was on the rise in Nigeria and across the continent, with fraudsters exploiting the anonymity and borderless nature of blockchain-based platforms
