Lotus Bank Limited, one of Nigeria’s newest financial institutions led by Isiaka Ajani-Lawal, has suffered a major security breach that has led to the diversion of customers’ funds estimated at over ₦1.5 billion, The Witness reports.
The Witness gathered that the incident has raised fresh concerns about cybersecurity vulnerabilities and internal control systems within Nigeria’s banking sector.
According to an affidavit filed before the Federal High Court in Lagos, Sunday Gbadebo, a fraud investigation officer with the bank, said a detailed internal review conducted between January 2023 and May 2024, extended to February 2026, uncovered alleged fraudulent activities linked to a staff member, Abdulkarim Arome Mohammed.
The bank alleged that Mohammed, who worked in the Financial Control Department, abused his system access privileges and fraudulently allocated profits belonging to customers to several unauthorised accounts.
The bank stated that the diverted funds, totalling ₦1,552,130,998.85, were dissipated into different accounts across 22 financial institutions and three individuals.
According to the bank, “we discovered suspicious Mudarabah profits were paid into some customer accounts with the bank and upon conducting a comprehensive review from January 2023 to May 2024 and to even February 2026, we uncovered fraudulent activities by a staff member, Abdulkarim Arome Mohammed.
“Mudarabah deposits are defined as the net average balance for all types of Mudarabah deposits (savings or term deposits) standing in the bank’s books at the end of the month,” it said.
The lender added that the beneficiary accounts belonged to Mohammed’s wife, Khadijah Aliyu Shuaib, identified as a FINCO officer responsible for advising on profit distribution, as well as one Peter Daniel and Emmas Ocheja Odogwu.
Damilola Kusimo, a member of the Brand, Marketing and Communications department of Lotus Bank, did not respond to The Witness inquiries as of press time.
The matter has been adjourned until June 16, 2026.
As investigations and legal proceedings unfold, the case serves as a stark reminder of the urgent need for stronger internal controls, tighter cybersecurity frameworks, and greater accountability within Nigeria’s banking system to protect customers and restore public trust.
Lotus Bank commenced commercial banking operations in 2021, with its headquarters in Lagos, Nigeria.