NFIU UNCOVERS NEW METHODS USED TO FINANCE TERRORISM
By: Safiya Abdulrahim Dabban
The Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) has uncovered new methods allegedly being used by terrorist financiers to conceal the identities of those controlling illicit funds.
In its 2025 Annual Report, the agency identified the use of pre-registered SIM cards, proxy bank accounts, disconnected SIM-BVN linkages and weak customer identification controls as emerging threats.
The NFIU said some criminal networks use SIM cards registered to other people, including deceased persons, to hide the identities of those operating bank accounts and conducting transactions.
It also revealed that some accounts are opened in women’s names but secretly controlled by male operatives using their ATM cards and mobile banking details. The agency described the practice as “identity laundering.”
The NFIU warned that these methods make it difficult for authorities to trace the real beneficiaries of illicit funds.
The agency called for stronger links between phone numbers, NIN, BVN and bank accounts, alongside improved customer verification and real-time monitoring of suspicious transactions.