In a sweeping judicial blow against cyber criminals, a Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered 71 banks to freeze accounts linked to a staggering N1.3 billion stolen from Access Bank customers through its digital banking platform.
Justice Akintayo Aluko issued the interim ruling on Friday, granting Access Bank’s urgent ex parte application to block withdrawals from scores of accounts used to warehouse the illicit funds—spread across the bank itself and 70 other financial institutions.
The heist was uncovered on August 12, 2026, when Access Bank’s internal systems flagged unauthorized transfers made via its “Access SME App.” In less than 24 hours, fraudsters had siphoned N1,340,425,393 from unsuspecting customers’ accounts, funneling the money through a web of beneficiary accounts across Nigeria’s banking ecosystem.
“The fraud was perpetrated through one of the Applicant’s internet banking applications,” Access Bank stated in court documents. “Monies were moved from customers’ accounts without authorization to several accounts domiciled with the Applicant and the 1st to 71st Respondents.”
The court granted three key reliefs:
· Post-No-Debit (PND) orders on all identified accounts and linked BVNs, restricting any withdrawals until further notice.
· Mandatory disclosure orders compelling all 71 banks to file affidavits revealing how much of the stolen funds remain in each beneficiary account.
· BVN watchlisting to track every account that received a share of the loot, ensuring no suspect escapes the dragnet.
However, the judge struck down the fourth request—seeking an outright reversal of funds—noting it appeared more like a final judgment than an interim measure.
The affected institutions read like a who’s who of Nigerian banking: First Bank, GTBank, Zenith, UBA, Ecobank, Fidelity, Stanbic IBTC, Sterling, Polaris, Union Bank, and dozens of microfinance banks, fintechs, and payment service providers—including Paga, Palmpay, OPay, Kuda, Fairmoney, and Carbon.
Others named include Jaiz Bank, Lotus Bank, Signature Bank, Titan Trust, Globus, and Optimus Bank, among 71 respondents in total.
The case has been adjourned to August 31, 2026, as Access Bank pushes for full recovery of every stolen kobo.
No arrests have been announced yet, but with 71 banks now locked in a legal chokehold and BVNs under surveillance, the net is tightening on the masterminds behind one of Nigeria’s largest digital banking heists this year.
