Jelili Gbadamosi
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has secured 10,872 convictions and obtained forfeiture orders on 10,053 tangible assets in the 34 months since Ola Olukoyede assumed office as Chairman of the anti-graft agency.
Olukoyede disclosed this on Monday, August 31, 2026, while presenting an account of his stewardship to the media, highlighting the Commission’s prosecution record, asset recovery, institutional reforms and growing focus on emerging forms of financial crime.
According to him, the EFCC received 49,673 petitions between October 2023 and July 2026, investigated 39,615 cases and filed 14,476 cases in court, resulting in 10,872 convictions.
He said the figures represented a 75.1 per cent conviction-to-filing ratio, adding that the Commission secured 1,370 convictions from 1,889 filings in the first half of 2026 alone.
Olukoyede said the Commission’s enforcement activities also resulted in the recovery of ₦1.233 trillion during the period under review.
Of the amount, approximately ₦397.26 billion, representing 33 per cent, was recovered directly for the Federal Government, while ₦836.34 billion, or 67 per cent, was recovered on behalf of ministries, departments and agencies, state revenue services, companies, individuals and foreign victims.
The EFCC chairman explained that the recovery figures demonstrated that the Commission’s activities extended beyond cases involving the Federal Government, with a significant portion of recovered funds benefiting other institutions and victims.
Beyond monetary recoveries, Olukoyede disclosed that the Commission secured the forfeiture of 10,053 tangible assets through interim and final court orders.
The forfeited assets included 8,198 electronic items, 1,177 real estate properties, 370 automobiles and 251 plots of land, as well as schools, factories, hotels, shops, oil rigs, barges, machinery and aircraft.
He added that the EFCC also recorded the forfeiture of 102 tonnes of solid minerals, while proceeds from the disposal of assets under final forfeiture orders amounted to approximately ₦12.07 billion and were paid into the coffers of the Federal Government.
Olukoyede said the Commission’s specialised enforcement operations also covered money laundering, unlicensed bureaux de change, illegal mining, virtual assets and terrorist financing.
He disclosed that 920 cases were recorded under the specialised enforcement portfolio, with 212 convictions secured.
According to him, money laundering and unlicensed bureau de change cases accounted for the largest proportion of the portfolio, while the Commission was increasingly responding to risks associated with virtual assets and illicit financial flows from the extractive sector.
The EFCC chairman further revealed that the Commission recorded 46,288 offences across nine major financial-crime categories between 2024 and 2026 year-to-date.
He said advance fee fraud and cybercrime accounted for nearly two-thirds of the recorded offences, while total offences increased by 24.1 per cent between 2024 and 2025, with procurement fraud, bank fraud, cybercrime and economic-governance offences recording notable increases.
Olukoyede said the changing crime patterns showed that the fight against economic and financial crimes was no longer limited to grand corruption but also involved protecting citizens, businesses and institutions from fraud and cyber-enabled financial crimes.
On restitution, he disclosed that ₦661.32 billion and $492.37 million were released to beneficiaries during the period.
The naira disbursement included approximately ₦325.35 billion paid directly to individuals and corporate bodies, while ₦335.97 billion was released to MDAs, the Nigerian Revenue Service, states’ internal revenue services and other beneficiaries.
The Commission also recovered approximately ₦288.1 billion in federal and state taxes, comprising ₦173.2 billion in federal tax recoveries and ₦114.9 billion attributed to state internal revenue services.
Olukoyede said about ₦257.2 billion in naira recoveries were also recorded for federal ministries, departments and agencies.
He pointed to the use of recovered proceeds for national development, recalling the Federal Government’s directive in August 2024 to allocate ₦50 billion each to the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) and the Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation from the EFCC’s proceeds of crime.
He added that a further ₦50 billion each was allocated to the two institutions in 2026 from EFCC recoveries.
The EFCC boss also highlighted institutional reforms introduced during his tenure, including new guidelines on arrest and bail, a review of sting operations and the establishment of the Department of Fraud Risk Assessment and Control, Security Department, Immigration and Visa Section and Cybercrime Rapid Response Centre.
He said the Commission commissioned new directorates in Enugu and Ilorin and established additional directorates in Ekiti, Anambra and Katsina states to improve access to its services.
Olukoyede also disclosed that the Internal Affairs Department had been renamed and restructured as the Ethics and Integrity Department as part of efforts to strengthen internal accountability.
Other reforms, he said, included policies on gifts and hospitality, conflict of interest and exhibit-room security.
On digital transformation, the EFCC chairman said almost 60 per cent of the Commission’s processes and operations had been digitalised.
He listed the development of the EFCC Academy, the 24/7 Cybercrime Rapid Response Centre and EFCC Radio among initiatives aimed at strengthening the agency’s capacity to respond to evolving financial crimes.
Olukoyede also linked the Commission’s enforcement activities to Nigeria’s removal from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Grey List in October 2025, describing the development as a national achievement to which EFCC investigations and enforcement contributed.
He said the Commission recorded 234 cases involving bureaux de change and secured 73 convictions within the period, adding that the enforcement was aimed at supporting a more formal and transparent foreign-exchange market.
Olukoyede said the last 34 months had been marked by sustained enforcement, prosecution, asset recovery, restitution, institutional restructuring and stronger domestic and international collaboration.
He maintained that the ultimate objective of the Commission’s activities was not merely to prosecute offenders but to protect the economy, recover illicit wealth and ensure that recovered assets and funds were returned to productive and legitimate use.
