A Lokoja branch manager of Zenith Bank, Salawu Nasiru, along with two Chinese nationals, Liu Yangxi and Ma Zhuang, have been implicated in a massive fraud scheme targeting two Nigerian ceramic companies, BN Ceramic Industry Limited and NB Ceramic Limited.
In a report published by THE PEOPLES GAZETTE, the trio allegedly conspired to fraudulently obtain approximately N17 billion in loans on behalf of the companies and their director, Zhang Qide, without their knowledge or approval.
The fraud took place between November 2021 and August 2023, with the loans being disbursed to Liu Yangxi. Documents show that Salawu received over N100 million as kickbacks for facilitating the illicit loans.
Key details of the fraud include:
Liu, without proper authority, secured a N3 billion loan from Zenith Bank, falsified signatures, and pledged the companies’ assets as collateral.
N69.9 million in kickbacks was paid to Salawu, with the remaining funds diverted to companies Liu controlled.
Liu continued the scheme with additional loans, falsifying invoices and transferring funds offshore to his personal accounts in China.
Furthermore, Liu and his associates engaged in various criminal activities, including establishing shell companies and laundering the funds. One of these companies, Pure Biotech Company Limited, faced serious environmental and safety issues, including illegal wastewater discharge into River Benue and a fatal accident in 2024.
Both the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the State Security Service (SSS) have been petitioned to investigate these fraudulent activities, which have raised serious concerns about the integrity of Nigeria’s banking system and regulatory oversight.
The managements of BN Ceramic Industry and NB Ceramic Ltd contacted the Managing Director of Zenith Bank on February 2, 2024. It is expected that the bank will investigate the allegations.
Zenith Bank has not been directly accused of involvement, beyond the actions of Salawu. However, investigations are ongoing
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