Flutterwave Suffers Illegal Transfer of N2.9bn from Account

By Alabidun Shuaib AbdulRahman

Recent reports have revealed that an illegal transfer of ₦2,949,557,867 has occurred from the accounts of Flutterwave, an African fintech unicorn.

Flutterwave’s legal counsel, Albert Onimole, reported the incident in a letter to the Deputy Commissioner of Police at the State Criminal Intelligence Department, Panti, Yaba.

Onimole’s letter indicates that the unauthorized transfer happened a few weeks ago, with the stolen funds being initially moved to 28 accounts via 63 transactions.

Flutterwave disclosed that some commercial banks have enabled the stolen funds to be moved to other accounts, complicating efforts to track down the perpetrators.

As a result, S.A. Adedesin, Legal Officer at the State CID, Panti, Yaba, filed a suit in the Magistrate Court of Lagos to help Flutterwave investigate the accounts holding the stolen funds in various financial institutions in Nigeria.

The suit is between the Commissioner of Police and the affected 28 commercial banks.

While it is unclear whether the court has ruled in favour of Inspector Micheal’s motion, some people have confirmed that their accounts have been frozen in connection with the hack.

Adebesin’s motion has requested that 107 accounts, including fifth beneficiaries of those accounts, be placed on lien/Post-No-Debit (PND).

It was reported that the stolen funds have been distributed across several accounts, some of which may have nothing to do with the hack, making it challenging to determine who hacked Flutterwave.

Flutterwave’s security measures have been questioned, and it remains to be seen what impact this will have on the company’s customers.

As at press time, Flutterwave is yet to respond to questions regarding the incident.