The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has traced funds from the collapsed CBEX crypto bridge exchange scheme to at least four countries, warning that full recovery and restitution to victims may not be possible.
EFCC Chairman Ola Olukoyede shared this during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Wednesday. He confirmed that several accounts linked to the fraudulent scheme have been frozen, with investigations yielding significant progress.
“We’ve frozen a reasonable amount of funds—though I can’t disclose the exact figures. Unfortunately, most transactions were in cryptocurrency and processed through wallets outside Nigeria, which makes recovery difficult,” Olukoyede said.
He added that recovering all lost funds is unlikely, as a large portion has already been moved beyond Nigeria’s financial system. “The masterminds behind the scheme—mostly foreign nationals—routed transactions through three to four different countries,” he said.
Currently, three suspects are in custody and have made valuable statements. The EFCC is also working with international partners to trace the funds and bring more suspects to justice.
The scheme came under scrutiny in April when CBEX users reported being unable to access their funds. Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission later confirmed that the platform was operating without registration.
On April 30, the EFCC declared foreign national Elie Bitar wanted in connection with the $1 billion crypto fraud. A federal high court has since authorized the arrest and detention of six CBEX promoters. Additionally, eight Nigerians have been declared wanted in relation to the scam.
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