Anti-graft agency says new Fraud Risk Assessment and Control Department will detect suspicious transactions early, while cryptocurrency tracing becomes a major focus

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has introduced a more proactive approach to tackling financial crimes, with the anti-graft agency now moving to temporarily freeze suspicious funds within 72 hours of detecting unusual financial movements.

EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, disclosed the development during a media interactive session in Abuja as he marked his third year in office.

Under the new approach, the commission says it will no longer wait until allegedly stolen funds have been completely moved or converted before taking action. Instead, its Fraud Risk Assessment and Control Department (FRAC) is being used to monitor financial transactions, identify suspicious movements and intervene before funds disappear beyond investigators' reach.

Olukoyede explained that the objective was to change the commission's traditional approach of investigating financial crimes after the money had already been stolen.

According to Olukoyede, when suspicious movement of funds is detected, the commission can intervene and place a temporary restriction on the funds while investigators establish their destination and purpose.

The EFCC chairman said the 72-hour intervention is intended to give investigators time to establish where suspicious funds are going and whether the transaction is legitimate.

The commission's concern, he explained, is that illicit funds can move through several accounts within a very short period before being converted into other assets or transferred outside Nigeria.

A government account, for instance, could transfer money to a private company, after which the funds could be moved through other accounts and eventually converted into cryptocurrency.

By the time investigators begin tracing the money, it could already be outside the traditional banking system.

Olukoyede said the new preventive strategy is designed to stop such transactions at an early stage rather than waiting for investigators to recover money after it has been dissipated.

The EFCC chairman also disclosed an example involving funds allegedly moved from a local government account to a private company before eventually being transferred into cryptocurrency wallets.

He said the transaction was detected by the commission's risk-assessment unit, prompting investigators to temporarily freeze the funds while determining their destination and the reason for the transfers.

Olukoyede did not disclose the name of the local government, company or state involved.

The development highlights the growing concern among Nigerian financial-crime investigators over the use of digital assets to move or conceal suspected illicit funds.

The EFCC says criminals are increasingly exploiting cryptocurrency because transactions can occur rapidly and funds can be moved across jurisdictions.

The commission is therefore expanding its capacity to trace virtual assets and identify the individuals behind suspicious cryptocurrency transactions.

Olukoyede said the commission's efforts now extend beyond conventional bank accounts to cryptocurrency wallets.

According to reports from the briefing, about 40 virtual asset platforms have been licensed in Nigeria, giving investigators greater capacity to trace transactions involving registered platforms.

The EFCC chairman also disclosed that the Federal Government has approved a national confiscation wallet for virtual assets recovered by law-enforcement agencies.

The arrangement is intended to provide a secure destination for cryptocurrencies and other digital assets seized during investigations and enforcement operations.

Olukoyede argued that traditional financial-crime investigations can take years, during which suspects may have enough time to move, conceal or convert assets.

He said the commission therefore wants to intervene much earlier in the process.

The chairman also pointed to the increasing use of technology and digital assets by individuals attempting to conceal the movement of illicit funds.

The new strategy, he said, is intended to ensure that investigators can act while suspicious transactions are still taking place rather than attempting to reconstruct the movement of money after it has disappeared.

The EFCC's new strategy comes amid an ongoing national debate about the legal limits of the commission's power to restrict bank accounts.

The controversy was particularly prominent following the EFCC's restriction of an Osun State Government account in August over alleged financial irregularities involving about ₦11 billion in ecological and intervention funds.

The commission said it acted after detecting suspicious transfers from the account.

President Bola Tinubu subsequently directed the EFCC to vacate the restriction on the Osun account, while stressing that anti-corruption agencies should operate independently and within the law.

Legal experts have also pointed to court decisions recognising a limited period for an investigative account restriction without prior judicial authorisation, after which further restriction may require a court order.

The legal debate means that while the EFCC's preventive strategy may strengthen its ability to respond rapidly to suspicious transactions, the commission must still operate within Nigeria's statutory and constitutional framework.

The commission has also called for stronger cooperation among banks, financial institutions, technology companies and other relevant agencies as financial criminals increasingly adopt digital methods.

Olukoyede maintained that preventing financial crimes requires investigators to understand emerging methods of moving money, including the use of cryptocurrency and other digital assets.

The EFCC's new approach effectively shifts part of its focus from recovering stolen funds after the fact to preventing suspicious funds from disappearing in the first place.

The commission says the strategy will be strengthened as its financial-intelligence and digital-investigation capabilities expand.