Fidelity Bank flags suspicious remittance, denies bribery allegation

Fidelity Bank Plc has dismissed allegations that one of its staff demanded a bribe to release funds sent to a customer via international money transfer, saying the transaction raised red flags under its compliance protocols.

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This was disclosed in a statement signed by the Divisional Head, Brand and Communications, Meksley Nwagboh, on Thursday.

The bank was reacting to a report by Sahara Reporters that accused it of deliberately withholding funds from a customer at its University of Benin (UNIBEN) branch and that a staff member solicited a bribe for the funds to be released.

The report alleged that a bank operations manager demanded a bribe after a customer visited Fidelity Bank’s UNIBEN branch on 14 March to claim a Remitly transfer.

A discrepancy in the customer’s middle name was later corrected, but only part of the funds was released. The manager was said to have made unsettling remarks implying a bribe was expected before payment.

Fidelity Bank described the publication as “false,” “malicious,” and “grossly unprofessional.”

According to the bank, the customer first visited the UNIBEN branch on Friday, 14 March, to claim a Remitly transfer.

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A name discrepancy delayed the initial processing, but once corrected, the bank said it treated the first tranche before noticing the remittance had been split into seven parts.

“In compliance with the bank’s Remittance policy, multiple transactions (i.e. we noticed the transaction was split into seven parts) are required to be sent to the Compliance department for due diligence before payment can be made. This was communicated to the customer,” the statement said.

The bank said that the customer returned on Monday, 17 March, demanding full payment, even though the compliance review had not been completed.

The bank said such splitting of funds is a method commonly used to evade regulatory thresholds and warranted further scrutiny.

“Our review showed that the transactions were suspicious,” the bank said, citing several red flags including the volume and structure of the transfers, the involvement of a third party claiming to be the recipient’s husband, and the beneficiary’s inability to explain the purpose of the funds.

It said it contacted Remitly, the international money transfer operator, which responded that it had been unable to reach the sender and that the beneficiary could not validate her relationship with him.

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“Remitly’s clear directive to the bank was to reject the transaction as they were unable to contact the sender, and the beneficiary could not validate her relationship with the sender,” the statement said.

The bank added that on 24 March, the customer returned to the branch to stage a demonstration and allegedly threatened to tarnish the bank’s reputation in the media.

“At no point did our staff ask for a bribe, explicitly or implicitly, to facilitate the transaction,” Fidelity stated. “We are deeply surprised at the gross unprofessionalism of the writer for publishing a story accusing the bank of refusing to pay a customer intentionally and accusing our staff of requesting a bribe… without any evidence.”

Fidelity Bank said it is now consulting legal counsel “with a view to seeking legal remedies” and has reported the matter to law enforcement for investigation.

“As a leading financial institution with a long-standing commitment to strong corporate governance, we remain dedicated to adhering to the law and maintaining the highest ethical standards in all our interactions with customers,” the statement added.