EFCC reports N1.233 trillion in recoveries
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has reported the recovery of N1.233 trillion between October 1, 2023, and July 31, 2026, during the tenure of its Chairman, Ola Olukoyede.
The commission disclosed the figure on Thursday, September 24, in a video published on its official X account highlighting its activities during the 34-month period.
According to the EFCC, its operations during the period also resulted in 10,872 convictions, following thousands of investigations and court cases.
The figures provide an overview of the agency's enforcement activities under Olukoyede, who became EFCC chairman in October 2023.
Nearly 50,000 petitions received
The EFCC said it received 49,673 petitions during the period under review.
Of those petitions, 39,615 cases were investigated, while 14,476 cases were filed in court.
The commission said the investigations and prosecutions ultimately resulted in 10,872 convictions.
The agency described petitions as the entry point for its investigations, with cases covering different categories of economic and financial crimes.
These included advance-fee fraud, cybercrime, money laundering, bank fraud and offences linked to economic governance.
The figures therefore cover a broad range of investigations rather than a single category of financial crime.
EFCC also reported foreign-currency recoveries
The N1.233 trillion figure represents the naira component of the recoveries reported by the commission.
The EFCC also reported recovering $684.48 million, £373,905.78 and €9.34 million, alongside funds recovered in other currencies.
The commission said the recoveries were made through investigations into suspected proceeds of crime and financial offences.
A previous stewardship report by Olukoyede put the exact naira recovery at N1,233,612,040,411.11.
Federal Government received about one-third of naira recoveries
The EFCC's breakdown also shows that the entire N1.233 trillion should not be interpreted as money recovered solely for the Federal Government.
Olukoyede previously said approximately N397.26 billion, representing about 33 per cent of the naira recoveries, constituted direct recoveries for the Federal Government.
The remaining N836.34 billion, or roughly 67 per cent, was recovered on behalf of ministries, departments and agencies, state revenue authorities, companies, individuals and foreign victims.
This distinction is important because EFCC recoveries can involve money or assets belonging to different beneficiaries rather than being funds that automatically become part of the federal government's general revenue.
10,872 convictions recorded
Beyond financial recoveries, the commission highlighted the number of convictions secured during the period.
The 10,872 convictions followed 14,476 cases filed in court, according to the EFCC.
Olukoyede had previously described the figure as evidence of a prosecution strategy focused on investigation, evidence gathering and courtroom outcomes.
In the first six months of 2026 alone, the commission said it secured 1,370 convictions from 1,889 cases filed.
The agency has increasingly focused its enforcement operations on cybercrime, money laundering, financial fraud and other forms of economic crime alongside cases involving suspected corruption and abuse of public resources.
Cybercrime and advance-fee fraud remain major areas
The EFCC's wider analysis of cases during the period showed that advance-fee fraud and cybercrime accounted for a substantial proportion of recorded offences.
According to figures reported during Olukoyede's stewardship briefing, the commission recorded 46,288 offences across nine major crime categories.
Advance-fee fraud accounted for 20,726 offences, while cybercrime accounted for 8,222. Money laundering followed with 5,620 recorded offences.
The figures underline the changing nature of financial crime in Nigeria, particularly as digital platforms and virtual assets become increasingly important to financial transactions.
The EFCC has also expanded its attention to areas such as virtual assets, illicit financial flows and other technology-enabled forms of financial crime.
Thousands of assets forfeited
The commission's enforcement record also includes asset forfeiture.
During the period, the EFCC secured interim and final forfeiture orders covering 10,053 tangible assets.
The assets included 8,198 electronic items, 1,177 real estate properties, 370 automobiles and 251 plots of land. Other forfeited assets included schools, factories, hotels, shops, oil rigs, barges, machinery and aircraft.
The EFCC also reported the forfeiture of 102 tonnes of solid minerals.
The commission has argued that asset recovery is an important part of financial-crime enforcement because tracing and recovering proceeds can return value to victims and government institutions.
Recovered funds have gone to different beneficiaries
The EFCC has also reported that recovered funds have been released through restitution and other recovery channels.
According to Premium Times, about N661.32 billion and $492.37 million had been released to beneficiaries, while additional recovered funds remained in recovery accounts or with exhibit keepers pending verification of rightful owners.
Beneficiaries have included government institutions, state revenue authorities, companies and individuals.
The commission has also linked some recovered funds to education financing and consumer credit programmes.
The Federal Government previously allocated N50 billion each from recovered proceeds to the Nigerian Education Loan Fund and the Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation in 2024, with further allocations approved in 2026, according to Olukoyede's stewardship report.
Tax recoveries also contributed to the figures
Olukoyede also disclosed that EFCC enforcement activities generated approximately N288.1 billion in federal and state tax recoveries during the period.
The figure comprised approximately N173.2 billion in federal tax recoveries and N114.9 billion attributed to state internal revenue services.
The EFCC stressed that these recoveries represented enforcement of existing tax obligations rather than the introduction of new taxes.
This means the figure forms part of the commission's broader financial-enforcement activities and should be distinguished from the N1.233 trillion headline recovery figure.
EFCC says the fight against financial crime continues
The commission's latest figures come as Nigeria continues to grapple with different forms of economic and financial crime.
The EFCC said its work during Olukoyede's tenure has involved investigations, prosecutions, asset recovery, institutional reforms and cooperation with domestic and international law-enforcement agencies.
While the reported recovery figure represents money and assets traced through enforcement operations, the figures do not by themselves establish that every recovery resulted from a conviction. Recoveries can occur at different stages of investigations and legal proceedings.
The EFCC has maintained that suspects remain entitled to due process and that courts ultimately determine criminal guilt.
The agency concluded its latest presentation by saying that its work would continue.
For the EFCC, the figures from October 2023 through July 2026 represent one of the agency's major statistical snapshots under Olukoyede, combining financial recoveries, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and asset forfeitures.
