NFIU Uncovers New Tactics Terrorist Financiers Use To Hide Illicit Funds

The Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) has uncovered emerging tactics being used by terrorist financiers to conceal the identities of those controlling illicit funds, including the use of disconnected SIM-BVN linkages, proxy bank accounts and pre-registered SIM cards.

The disclosure is contained in the NFIU’s 2025 Annual Report, which identified weaknesses in customer identification and digital financial controls as major emerging enablers of financial crime and terrorist financing.

According to the report, financiers exploit gaps between mobile phone registration and financial identities by using SIM cards that are not registered to the actual holders or operators of bank accounts.

The NFIU said the schemes include the use of pre-registered SIM cards, SIMs registered to deceased persons and SIMs linked to gender-based proxies to circumvent security mechanisms connecting telephone numbers with Bank Verification Numbers (BVN).

The agency explained that such arrangements allow individuals controlling illicit funds to remain hidden, as the phone numbers used for mobile banking, transaction alerts and other financial activities may belong to people with no connection to the transactions.

The financial intelligence agency also flagged the use of proxy bank accounts, particularly accounts opened in the names of women but secretly controlled by male commanders, logistics managers or other operatives.

It said wives, sisters and female associates are sometimes used as fronts because of social and cultural assumptions that may make them less likely to attract official scrutiny.

The NFIU described the practice as “identity laundering,” noting that men may possess and operate the ATM cards, mobile banking credentials and personal identification numbers attached to accounts registered in women’s names.

The report warned that the arrangement creates an additional layer between the actual operators and illicit funds, making it harder for investigators to establish the true beneficiaries and controllers of suspicious transactions.