FG Orders Banks to Freeze Assets of Individuals Linked to Terror Financing

The Federal Government has directed banks, financial institutions and designated non-financial businesses to fully enforce sanctions against individuals and organisations linked to terrorism financing, including freezing assets and reporting suspicious transactions. The directive follows recent sanctions imposed by the United States on Nigerian businessman Mukhtar Adamu Muhammad and three Bureau De Change operators over allegations of facilitating financial transactions for ISIS. In a statement on Thursday, the Nigerian Sanctions Committee said all institutions must comply with asset-freezing requirements and promptly report any matches linked to sanctioned individuals or entities. The committee noted that Nigeria recently added six individuals and one Bureau De Change company to its sanctions list following intelligence reports and financial investigations linking them to the financing of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) and other terrorist networks. It stressed that terrorists and their financiers would find no safe haven within Nigeria’s financial system and reaffirmed the country’s commitment to working with international partners to combat terrorism financing. Meanwhile, Chief of Defence Intelligence, Emmanuel Undiandeye, said the Nigerian military, in collaboration with allies including the United States, United Kingdom and France, has significantly weakened terrorist groups operating in the country. Speaking at a Defence Intelligence Agency briefing in Abuja, he said security forces had dismantled logistics networks and neutralised several commanders linked to Boko Haram, ISWAP and other extremist groups. Undiandeye attributed recent gains to improved intelligence, technology and stronger cooperation among Nigerian security agencies and international partners, adding that efforts to tackle security threats across Nigeria and the wider Sahel region remain ongoing.

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