Panic has gripped a section of Access Bank account holders following the discovery on August 12, 2026, that a staggering ₦1,340,425,393 was allegedly siphoned from their accounts and illicitly transferred into multiple beneficiary accounts held both within Access Bank and across 71 other financial institutions, triggering widespread alarm, distress and urgent calls for the bank and relevant authorities to trace, freeze and recover the funds while assuring customers of the safety of their deposits.

Following the suspected cyber fraud diversion of ₦1,340,425,393 from its customers’ accounts, Access Bank has successfully secured a Federal High Court order in Lagos to freeze the beneficiary accounts across 71 financial institutions in an urgent bid to checkmate the illicit activity and recover the stolen funds.

The presiding judge, Honourable Justice Akintayo Aluko of the Federal High Court, issued the interim order following an urgent ex parte application moved by Access Bank Plc through its counsel, Ifeoma E. Enyinnaya, seeking immediate judicial intervention to preserve the disputed funds and prevent further dissipation.Consequently, the court ordered a Post No Debit (PND) restriction to be placed on all identified accounts alleged to have received tranches of the ₦1,340,425,393, effectively freezing withdrawals, transfers and any form of debit activity from those accounts pending the determination of the motion on notice and further directives of the court.

According to court filings, Access Bank said it uncovered the alleged fraud on August 12th after detecting unusual and unauthorized transactions across several customers’ accounts.

The bank alleged that the unauthorized transfers were orchestrated through its business internet banking platform, the Access SME App.

In its court filing, Access Bank stated: “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 applications known as Access SME App.”

The bank told the court that an immediate internal investigation traced the illicit movement of N1,340,425,393.00 from affected customers’ accounts into several beneficiary accounts maintained both with Access Bank itself and with 71 other financial institutions across the country.

Fearing that the funds could be rapidly dissipated, withdrawn or further laundered before recovery efforts could be completed, the bank approached the Federal High Court on August 13, 2026, seeking urgent preservative and interim protective orders.

Among the reliefs sought was: “AN ORDER of this Honourable Court directing/mandating the 1st Applicant (Access Bank) and the 1st to 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… pending the determination of the Motion on Notice.”

Access Bank also sought an order compelling the 71 respondent financial institutions to file and serve an Affidavit of Disclosure in respect of the accounts listed in the Schedules marked Exhibit Access 1 and Access 2, detailing the exact amounts salvaged and currently domiciled in each of the accounts that allegedly benefited from the unauthorized N1,340,425,393.00 transfer.

In addition, the bank prayed the court to mandate and direct both itself and the 1st to 71st Respondents to watchlist the Bank Verification Numbers (BVNs) linked to all the accounts in Exhibits Access 1 and Access 2, as well as any other accounts subsequently discovered to have received portions of the illicit funds, until the entire sum of N1,340,425,393.00 is fully recovered, limited strictly to the amount each beneficiary is found to have received.

The bank further sought a consequential order directing the Applicant and the Respondent banks to reverse all salvaged funds in the listed accounts, and in any other accounts connected to the affected BVNs, into Access Bank’s designated recovery account numbered 0703060877, again to the extent of the sum traced to each beneficiary.

Ruling on the ex parte application, Justice Aluko granted the first three reliefs, ordering the immediate imposition of Post No Debit (PND) restrictions on the beneficiary accounts, mandatory disclosure of the funds held therein, and the watchlisting of the associated BVNs; however, he declined the fourth relief for reversal, holding that such an order would amount to granting a final relief at an interlocutory stage. The matter was thereafter adjourned to August 31, 2026, for hearing of the Motion on Notice for the substantive recovery and reversal of the allegedly diverted funds.