$7m forfeiture down, N270m scandal up: EFCC puts Providus Bank in the hot seat again

Seven months after Providus Bank waved goodbye to $7 million seized by the EFCC, the bank is back on the anti-graft agency’s radar — this time over a customer’s missing N270 million.

Here’s the gist: Cornerblock Services Limited says it parked N270 million in Boon Sales & Marketing’s Providus account back in January 2024. The catch? The money came with strings attached. Cornerblock slapped an irrevocable lien on it and insisted no kobo moves without their signature.

Somehow, the whole N270m still vanished. Cornerblock swears it never signed off on anything. The documents used to lift the lien? Forged, they say. To make it spicier, the Providus staffer who handled the account reportedly ghosted right after the cash walked.

Cornerblock knocked on Providus’ door to get the money back. Brick wall. So they took the matter to the EFCC. The agency is now asking questions and pulling documents.

Advertisement

Plateau arraigns four over Angwa Rukuba killings; court remands suspects in DSS custody

Providus isn’t having it. The bank ran to the Federal High Court in Lagos, asking a judge to tell the EFCC to back off. Their argument: this is just a civil contract fight — bank instructions, mandates, board resolutions. No crime, no EFCC. They also point to the Bankers’ Committee, which they say already cleared them.

Cornerblock fires back: the Bankers’ Committee doesn’t do criminal probes. Forgery and unauthorized withdrawals? That’s EFCC territory.

For now, Providus has a temporary win. On February 25, 2026, Justice Daniel Osiagor gave the bank leave to challenge the EFCC and froze the agency’s probe until the court decides. Round two is set for July 3, 2026.

So is it a messy business quarrel or a full-blown fraud case? The court will say. But for Providus, this is the second time in a year the EFCC has come knocking — first for $7m in the vault, now for N270m out of a customer’s account.