Speaking on behalf of the committee members, Access Bank Managing Director, Herbert Wigwe, said banks were working out modalities that would enable them to establish a central database to identify and punish e-fraud perpetrators.

Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed e-fraud has been on the rise in recent years.

Although e-fraud rate in terms of value dropped by 63 percent in nearly two years, after the Bank Verification Number (BVN) introduction and improved collaboration among banks via the fraud desks, the total fraud volume rose significantly by 683 per cent within the period.

Also, Nigeria experienced nearly 3,500 cyber-attacks with 70 per cent success rate and loss of $450 million within the last two years mainly through cross-channel fraud, data theft, e-mail spooling, phishing, shoulder surfing and underground websites.

“There is the need for a central database for suspected fraudsters in the system. It will ensure strict deterrent for fraudsters that send unsolicited SMS. We are taking very strict measures against e-fraud. Repeat offenders will be taken out of the banking system,” Wigwe said.

Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Director, Banking Supervision, Ahmed Abdullahi, said the apex bank is moving towards rate convergence in the foreign exchange market. He said the economy will soon be out of recession, and that the apex bank will sustain its interventions in the foreign exchange market.

Abdullahi said both the SMEs Forex Window and the Investor/Exporter Forex Window are all geared towards ensuring that more liquidity is introduced into the forex market to stabilise the local currency.

“In the investor/exporter window, prices will be determined by market forces. It will allow investors come in and trade at their own prices. We want to boost confidence in the market and allow more inflow of forex,” he said.

The CBN director also said that banks will henceforth, commit five per cent of their profit after tax to small and medium enterprises and Agric funding.

Also speaking at the committee meeting, CBN’s Spokesman, Isaac Okorafor, said the apex bank has eliminated “frivolous demand” for foreign currency by introducing a multiple exchange rate system and has been intervening on the spot and forward markets to boost liquidity.

He said the multiple exchange rates was aimed at improving dollar supply while allowing investors to trade their own dollars at a more market-determined rate.