The Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit has flagged suspicious transactions valued at over N150tn between January and March 2022, according to its Suspicious Transaction Report/Suspicious Activity Report released on Sunday.

The development came as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and NFIU officials said they had intensified their surveillance on campaign spending by political parties and their candidates ahead of the 2023 polls.

Multiple EFCC and NFIU sources said their personnel were carrying out a series of joint operations to close in on several suspicious spending by parties, candidates and top chieftains.

NFIU, formerly a unit under the EFCC, is the central national agency responsible for the coordination of the country’s anti-money laundering, counter-terrorist financing and counter-proliferation financing frameworks.

Also, the EFCC has deployed its operatives to track candidates’ campaign spending and monitor their bank accounts as part of actions to combat money laundering ahead of the general elections.

The development, it was gathered, was also meant to frustrate the movement of huge cash under the guise of election spending by the candidates and their political parties.

According to the latest NFIU report, the N150tn suspicious transactions were reported by banks, insurance firms, microfinance banks, assets management companies, brokers and other financial institutions.

The report shows that suspicious transactions have risen by 23 per cent in the first quarter of this year compared to the corresponding period of last year.

Meanwhile, out of the 2,845,927 suspicious transactions recorded by financial institutions in the first quarter of the year, banks alone accounted for 2,810,213, according to the NFIU activity statistics.

By law, financial institutions and designated non-financial institutions are required to file a Suspicious Transaction Report/Suspicious Activity Report with the NFIU detailing known or suspected violations of law or suspicious activities in line with the provisions of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act, 2011.

According to the NFIU report, during the review period, banks reported 2,810,213 STRs; merchant banks 14,810; assets management companies 8,237; micro-finance banks, 3,258; other financial institutions, 2,729; insurance companies 2,474; primary mortgage institutions, 1,911 and stock brokers 1,333.

Others are insurance brokers 467; trustees, 264; finance companies, 176; development financial institutions, 35; financial institutions 10 and issuing houses, 10.

Suspicious transactions rise

The NFIU also disclosed that suspicious transactions increased by 22.91 per cent in Q1 2022 compared to Q1 2021.

The financial institutions reported N108.5tn suspicious transactions in the first quarter of 2021.

The intelligence agency stated, ‘’Based on the table (of transactions), all agency business had an increase in Suspicious Transactions Reported to the NFIU in Q1 2022 compared to Q1 2021 with the exception of Development Financial Institutions.

‘’Overall, the total number of STRs received by the NFIU across agency business has increased by 22.91 per cent in Q1 2022 compared to Q1 2021.’’

The NFIU explained that it recorded a total of N1.9tn suspicious transactions between July and December 2021.

Between October and December, the financial intelligence agency recorded suspicious transactions valued at N1.706tn with banks accounting for N1.704tn.

Similarly, out of the 4,117 STRs logged by the agency between July and September 2021 valued at N208.6bn, banks accounted for 3,967 transactions estimated at N206.5bn.

In the third quarter of 2020, the unit recorded 4,392 STRs valued at N292.2bn with banks alone accounting for 4,328 suspicious transactions.

Comparing the STRs in the third quarter of 2020 and 2021, the NFIU said, “Primary Mortgage Institutions, insurance companies, microfinance banks, merchant banks, trustee and finance companies had an increase in suspicious transactions received in Q3 2021 compared to Q3 2020.

“However, banks, stockbrokers and development financial institutions had a decline in transaction count in Q3 2021 compared to Q3 2020. Overall, there has been a decline in STRs received in Q3 2021 compared to Q3 2020 by 6.21 per cent.”

The financial intelligence agency noted that insurance companies and other financial institutions reported an increase in suspicious activity in Q1 2022 compared to Q1 2021.

Similarly, financial institutions reprted currency transactions estimated at N153.5tn in the first quarter of the year.

Financial institutions are required to file currency transaction reports for each transaction in currency – deposit, withdrawal, exchange of currency, or other payment or transfer within a certain threshold to help prevent money laundering.

The NFIU concluded that banks, microfinance banks, merchant banks, insurance companies, custodians, insurance brokers, trustees, finance companies, development financial institutions and registrars had an increase in the CTR reported to the agency in the fourth quarter of 2021 compared to the fourth quarter of 2020.

“However, asset management companies, stockbrokers, primary mortgage institutions and issuing houses had a decline in the CTR filed to the NFIU in Q4 2021 compared to Q4 2020. Overall, the total number of the CTR filed to the NFIU in Q4 2021 has increased by 10.75 per cent compared to Q4 2020,” the unit stated.

NFIU supplies reports

Also, the NFIU revealed that it supplied 103 intelligence reports to the military and other security agencies in the first quarter of the year; 101 to other competent authorities and 46 to law enforcement agencies totalling 250.