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Access Bank Plc has approached the Federal High Court in Lagos to freeze accounts linked to the alleged unauthorised transfer of N1.34 billion from the accounts of four of its customers.
The bank said the suspected fraud was discovered when it resumed operations on August 12, 2026, prompting an internal investigation into the incident.
According to court documents, the investigation revealed that N1,340,425,393 was allegedly transferred without authorisation from four customer accounts.
The affected accounts include MIB TXN Bullion-Aba Branch, from which N590.98 million was allegedly transferred; AllCO General Insurance Company Limited, with N420.45 million; Apogee Engineering Limited, with N136 million; and Sims Nigeria Limited, with N193 million.
Access Bank said its investigation traced portions of the funds to accounts domiciled with the bank and 71 other financial institutions and payment service providers.
In the suit marked FHC/LAG/CS/1168/2026, the bank is seeking an order directing the respondent institutions to place Post No Debit (PND) restrictions on accounts and Bank Verification Numbers (BVNs) linked to beneficiaries of the alleged transfers.
It also asked the court to preserve the funds pending the determination of the substantive suit and prevent further movement or dissipation of the money.
The bank requested an order compelling the respondent institutions to disclose the amounts recovered and provide details of the accounts linked to the alleged beneficiaries.
It further urged the court to direct that any recovered funds be returned to an Access Bank account belonging to the applicant.
According to the affidavit filed in support of the application, the bank promptly notified the affected financial institutions after discovering the alleged fraud and requested them to preserve the funds.
Access Bank stated that while some institutions had already placed temporary restrictions on the affected accounts, a court order was required to sustain those measures.
The lender argued that urgent judicial intervention was necessary to prevent further loss of funds and assist in recovering the money allegedly diverted from customers' accounts.
It also maintained that the application would help combat cybercrime and protect the integrity of Nigeria's financial system.
The respondents include several commercial banks, microfinance banks, fintech firms and payment service providers, among them First Bank, GTBank, Zenith Bank, UBA, Fidelity Bank, Ecobank, FCMB, OPay, PalmPay, Moniepoint, Kuda and Paga.
The case is yet to be determined by the Federal High Court.
