EFCC Adopts 72-Hour Freeze on Suspicious Funds and Crypto

​The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has officially altered its operational strategy, transitioning from reactive post-crime investigations to aggressive preventative intervention and asset freezing.

​Addressing the media in Abuja during an interactive session marking his third year in office, EFCC Chairman Ola Olukoyede disclosed that the commission has established a specialized Fraud Risk Assessment and Control Department (FRAC). This unit is mandated to monitor suspicious financial movements and implement temporary freezes within a 72-hour window.

​“Why must we be waiting for money to be stolen? When we see money moving suspiciously, we move in and freeze. Pending 72 hours, we ask: where is this money going?” Olukoyede stated.

​The Crypto and Digital Laundering Threat

​The anti-graft agency highlighted an emerging trend where public officials and fraudsters bypass traditional banking safeguards by routing embezzled funds through corporate accounts and into cryptocurrency wallets within 24 hours, frequently utilizing tech-savvy proxies to obscure the trail.

​Olukoyede warned that illicit actors possess the digital tools to drastically destabilize financial systems if unchecked, noting that a vast majority of current high-profile data investigations lack easily traceable tangible assets.

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​To counter this digital shift, the commission is leveraging the oversight of approximately 40 licensed virtual asset platforms operating in Nigeria. Backed by presidential approval, the EFCC has also collaborated with relevant security bodies to establish a centralized national confiscation wallet designated for storing seized cryptocurrencies.

​Civil Forfeiture and Asset Management

​In a move to accelerate justice and bypass lengthy criminal trials that often span over a decade, the commission is heavily deploying Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud Act to pursue civil asset forfeitures. Under this framework, legal action is initiated directly against the disputed asset, placing the burden of proof squarely on claimants to justify the legitimate source of their funds.

​Addressing the management of recovered properties, Olukoyede emphasized that the commission strictly outsources asset administration to certified professionals—including estate managers, stock market specialists, and broadcast experts—in compliance with the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) 2022. Furthermore, fast-depreciating assets caught in protracted litigation are being systematically liquidated, with the proceeds secured in escrow accounts pending final judicial verdicts.

​The EFCC chairman concluded by emphasizing that law enforcement alone cannot secure victory against systemic corruption, calling for robust institutional policy reforms to close financial leakages alongside active oversight from the media and civil society.