Access Bank Plc is currently struggling to recover a whooping sum of N1,340,425,393 billion allegedly removed from its vault by some suspected hackers, when its system experienced glitches sometimes early this month.
The sums were allegedly removed from the accounts of MIB TXN Bullion, Aba Branch, AIICO General Insurance Company Limited, Apogee Engineering Limited and Sims Nigeria Limited, domiciled with the bank.
However, Access Bank in a desperate bid to recover the huge lost, has approached a Federal High Court, Lagos, with an Exparte motion marked FHC/LAG/MISC/1168/2026, wherein it listed 71 banks allegedly used by the suspected hackers to warehoused the sum as respondents.
The motion according to Access Bank was Pursuant order 26 Rules 6 of (Civil Procedure) RULE 2019, Sections, 6(6)(C) and 36 of the Constitution Of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (As Amended) and under the court’s inherent jurisdiction.
In the suit, Access Bank has asked the court for six reliefs which were: “an order of this Honorable Court directing/mandating the 1st Applicant and the 1st- 71st respondents to place a post-no-debit (PND) on all the bank accounts and BVN listed in the Schedule marked Exhibit Access 1 & 2 respectively and any other accounts that benefitted from the unauthorized funds of N1,340,425,393.00 (One Billion, Three Hundred and Forty Million, Four Hundred and Twenty-Five Thousand, Three Hundred and Ninety-Three Naira Only), to the extent of the sums received by the beneficiaries, pending the determination of the Motion on Notice.
“An order of this Honorable Court directing/mandating the 1st – 71st respondents to file and serve its Affidavit of disclosure on the accounts as listed in the Schedule marked Exhibit Access 1 & Access 2, stating the amounts salvaged in the accounts being accounts that benefited from the sum of N1, 340,425,393.00 (One Billion, Three Hundred and Forty Million, Four Hundred and Twenty-Five Thousand, Three Hundred and Ninety-Three Naira Only)
“An order of this Honourable Court mandating/directing the Applicant and 1st -71st Respondents to watchlist the BVNs of accounts listed in Exhibit Access 1 and Exhibit Access 2, and any other accounts that benefitted/received the Country Hill Attorney and Solicitors unauthorized funds until the total sum of N1,340,425,393.00 (One Billion, Three Hundred and Forty Million, Four Hundred and Twenty-Five Thousand, Three Hundred and Ninety-Three Nalra) is fully recovered only to the extent received by each of the beneficiaries.
“An order of this Honorable Court directing/mandating the Applicant and the 1st- 71st Respondents to reverse ihe salvaged funds in the accounts listed and accounts linked to their BVNs, as contained in Exhibit Access 1 and Exhibit “access 2 respectively, to the Applicant’s account number 0703060877 domiciled with the Applicant to the extent received by each of the beneficiaries.”
The bank anchored it’s requests on the following grounds: “Upon resumption on 12th August 2026, the Applicant noticed a fraud incident which occurred on some accounts domiciled with the Applicant and was perpetrated through one of the Applicant’s Internet banking application known as Access SME App.
“It was discovered upon the Applicant’s internal investigation that monies totaling N1, 340, 425, 393.00 billion, were moved from its customers’ accounts without authorization to several accounts domiciled with the Applicant and the 1st—71st Respondents as listed in Exhibit Access Bank 1.
“The Applicant’s investigation also revealed the BVN of the beneficiaries and the accounts linked to the beneficiaries’ BVN. The list of accounts linked to the beneficiaries BVN ore attached and marked Access 2. The BVN of the customers as listed in Exhibit Access 2 are needed to enable the Applicant to recover the full sums.
“There is an urgent need for the order of this court to preserve the res and every other account in receipt of the funds to avoid further dissipation of the funds.
“The Applicant has o duty to ensure that the funds transferred out of its customers’ accounts without authority are not withdrawn or transferred from the accounts or dissipated in any manner or form until the monies disbursed are fully recovered.”
To further convince the court to grants its requests, Access Bank supported the Exparte motion with an affidavit deposed to by one Sodiq Jimoh, a litigation clerk in the law firm of Country Hill Attorneys & Solicitors,the bankst counsel.
Some of the deponent’s disposition in the affidavit reads: “Upon resumption on 12th August 2026, the Applicant noticed a fraud incident which occured on some accounts domiciled with the Applicant and was perpetrated through one of the Applicant’s internet banking application known as Access SME App.
b. It was discovered that monies totalling N1,340,425,393.00 (One Billion, Three’ Hundred and Forty Million, Four Hundred and Twenty-Five Thousand, Three Hundred and Ninety-Three Naira) were moved from the underlisted accounts in the manner below; MIB Txn Bullion, Aba Branch, N590, 975, 889. 00; AIICO General Insurance Company Limited – (000007157, N420,449,504.00; Apogee Engineering Limited – 0000007872 – N136 million and SIMS Nigeria Limited 0060068505 – N193,000,000.00, TOTALING N1, 340, 425, 393. 00 billion.
“The Applicant’s internal investigation revealed that monies moved from the accounts without authorisation had been dissipated to several accounts domiciled with the Applicant and the 1st 71st Respondents.
“The Applicant’s investigation also revealed the BVN of the beneficiaries and the accounts linked to the beneficiaries’ BVN. The list of accounts linked to the beneficiaries BVN are attached and marked Access 2.
“The BVN of the customers as listed in Exhibit Access 2 are needed to enable the Applicant to recover the full sums.
“The Applicant, immediately, contacted the 1st- 71st Respondents to be notify the Respondents of the fraud and request that the funds be salvaged and provide further details to enable its investigation.
“There is an urgent need for the order of this court to preserve the res and every other account in receipt of the funds to avoid further dissipation of the funds.
“That the 1st-71st respondents have placed a PND on the accounts, but they need an order of this Honourable Court to sustain it.
“The Applicant has a duty to ensure that the funds transferred out of its customer account without authority to accounts domiciled with the 1st-71st Respondents are not withdrawn or transferred from the accounts or dissipated in any manner or form until the monies disbursed are fully recovered.
“he grant of this application is also necessary to prevent cyber-crime which has the capacity to undermine economic and national interest. And that the bank undertakes fo pay damages if it is found that the order ought not to have been granted.
“This Honourable Court has the judicial power to grant the PND order and the order for the immediate reversal of the funds to the Applicant. And that imeparable damage and financial loss will result if this application is not granted quickly.
“It will be in the interest of justice to grant the orders sought herein.”
Justice Akintayo Aluko after listening to the Access Bank’s lawyer, Ifeoma E. Enyinnaya’s submissions, perused through all the processes filed and cited legal authorites on Friday, ruled that; “….. the essence of the application is to preserve the funds from further dissipation. The court has a duty to preserve the ‘res’,
“…. reliefs 1 to 3 are grantable, while relief 4 cannot be granted at this stage, because it more like final order.
“Accordingly reliefs 1 to 3 are granted while relief 4 is refused.”
The judge while adjourning the matter to August 31, 2026, for further, directed the lawyer to file an undertaken as to damages, should the orders ought not to have been made