Alpha Morgan Bank Plc, together with two of its major customers — NEM Insurance Plc and Extension Publications Limited — has dragged 19 financial institutions to the Federal High Court in Lagos after the alleged disappearance of ₦230,978,536 during what the bank described as a serious system glitch.
The legal action, filed through the law firm of Babafemi Akinsete & Co., seeks urgent court orders to freeze dozens of bank accounts, block further transfers, and recover all funds reportedly diverted during the incident.
According to an affidavit deposed to by Dayo Abe, a litigation officer at the firm, Alpha Morgan Bank experienced a temporary technical malfunction that was quickly exploited by some service merchant agents who operate as digital financial services providers. These agents allegedly used the glitch to initiate multiple unauthorised transfers from the accounts belonging to NEM Insurance and Extension Publications.
The affidavit states that these fraudulent transfers moved through several accounts hosted in the 19 defendant banks, with the funds allegedly spread across different BVNs linked to the suspects. Alpha Morgan Bank’s internal investigation reportedly tracked the total missing amount to ₦230.9 million, split across numerous recipient accounts.
Following complaints from Alpha Morgan Bank, the affected financial institutions placed post-no-debit (PND) restrictions on the first set of suspicious accounts. But the plaintiffs argue that this measure is not enough to safeguard the funds.
They told the court that the money has already begun moving from one bank to another in a coordinated pattern, which they described as an attempt by the perpetrators to “unlawfully dissipate” the proceeds before investigators can fully trace them.
The affidavit adds that unless all accounts linked to the BVNs of the suspected agents — including accounts not yet identified — are immediately frozen, the funds may be lost permanently. They argue that the case has escalated into what they called a “humongous fraud,” causing serious financial damage to the bank and its customers.
The plaintiffs are therefore asking the court for strong, immediate orders compelling the 19 financial institutions to refund all the amounts wrongfully debited from the affected accounts and return the money to Alpha Morgan Bank’s settlement and collection account.
They also want the court to order the immediate freezing of all BVN-connected accounts that could have benefited from the transfers, pending the conclusion of investigations.
The suit highlights rising cybersecurity and digital-banking challenges across Nigeria’s financial system. Many industry analysts believe the increasing reliance on automated settlement systems and mobile-money platforms has exposed banks to sophisticated fraud schemes, especially when technical disruptions occur.
Alpha Morgan Bank has not publicly disclosed details of the glitch or how long it lasted, but insiders familiar with the matter said the incident took place during a brief outage in the bank’s transaction processing platform. The bank reportedly discovered anomalies after reconciliation processes showed unexplained fund movements.
For NEM Insurance and Extension Publications, the incident has raised concerns about the safety of corporate deposits and the reliability of the digital channels many companies now depend on for daily transactions.
Legal analysts say the case could set an important precedent regarding bank liabilities during system outages, especially in situations where fraudsters exploit weak points in a bank’s internal infrastructure.
As of the time of filing this report, the Federal High Court has not fixed a date for the hearing. It is expected that the defendants — some of Nigeria’s most prominent commercial and microfinance banks — will file responses in the coming days.
Financial fraud has remained a significant concern within Nigeria’s banking system, with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) repeatedly warning banks and financial institutions to strengthen their cybersecurity structures. Many banks have also faced pressure to improve fraud-monitoring tools and ensure tighter compliance checks on digital-service agents.
With ₦230.9 million now at the centre of this dispute, the outcome of the case will likely attract close attention from regulators, financial-technology players, and corporate depositors across the country.
