By Christiana Ekpa
The House of Representatives on Tuesday called for urgent executive action to dismantle the financial networks fuelling kidnapping, banditry and terrorism, urging the Federal Government to tighten oversight of Bureau De Change (BDC) operators, Point-of-Sale (POS) agents and other financial intermediaries.
The resolution followed the adoption of a motion titled, “Need for Executive Action to Halt the Ransom Cash Economy, Strengthen Financial Intelligence Coordination, and Enforce Compliance with Anti-Money Laundering Frameworks in Nigeria,” sponsored by Rep. Ademorin Kuye (APC, Lagos).
Moving the motion, Kuye said the Federal Government has a constitutional duty to protect lives and preserve Nigeria’s economic sovereignty, stressing that existing laws already empower relevant agencies to detect and disrupt illicit financial flows.
He cited provisions of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022 and the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, which mandate financial institutions, designated non-financial businesses and government agencies to identify and prevent transactions linked to money laundering, terrorism financing and ransom payments.
The lawmaker expressed concern over the growing scale of Nigeria’s ransom economy, citing reports by the Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), the National Bureau of Statistics’ Crime Experience and Security Perception Survey 2024, and independent security organisations, which estimated that Nigerians paid about N2.23 trillion in ransom between January 2021 and June 2025.
According to him, the huge sums paid to kidnappers have continued to finance organised criminal activities across the country.
Kuye also referenced findings by the National Counter Terrorism Centre under the Office of the National Security Adviser, indicating that some POS operators and other financial channels have been exploited to facilitate ransom payments and conceal financial trails, thereby complicating investigations and asset recovery.
He warned that criminal groups are increasingly exploiting both formal and informal financial systems, including BDC operators, hawala networks, cryptocurrency platforms, livestock transactions and trade-based money laundering schemes to launder proceeds of crime and integrate them into the legitimate economy.
The House noted that persistent weaknesses in financial intelligence coordination and enforcement of anti-money laundering regulations continue to expose Nigeria to heightened security risks, erode public confidence and increase the country’s vulnerability to international sanctions, including its continued placement on the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list.
Following deliberations, the lawmakers urged President Bola Tinubu to establish a coordinated inter-agency framework to disrupt ransom financing and improve collaboration among security, regulatory and financial institutions.
