EFCC arraigns man over unlawful bureau de change business

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Wednesday, arraigned a suspected bureau de change (BDC) operator, Abdulkarim Auwalu, for allegedly operating foreign exchange business without a valid licence from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Mr Auwalu was arraigned before Judge Alexander Owoeye of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos.

He was charged with six counts of operating bureau de change business without proper licence, contrary to Section 57 of the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act, 2020, and punishable under Section 57(5) of the same Act.

A statement by the EFCC spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, said the defendant was accused of running his business between January and April 2024 without his company duly incorporated in Nigeria.

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The suspect pleaded not guilty to the charges on Wednesday.

Following his plea, prosecution counsel, A.A. Usman, asked the court to fix a trial date and remand the defendant in a correctional centre. But the defence counsel, Abdulqadir Wodi, informed the court of a pending bail application, which he sought to move.

Mr. Usman told the court he had not received the application and was subsequently served in the open court. The bail application was not heard due to its late service on the EFCC, which is expected to file an objection to it.

Mr Owoeye remanded the defendant in the correctional centre and adjourned the matter till 1 July for hearing of the bail application.

Background

According to the EFCC, the case began after a petitioner reported that he was contacted by unknown persons who introduced a business proposal involving the defendant’s alleged bureau de change business and medical equipment importation operations in Nigeria.

The EFCC said the proposal involved a promised investment of $10 million, which would be transmitted to the defendant’s Kano office address. But during the process, the complainant was allegedly asked to pay various sums under the guise of statutory charges to facilitate the clearance of boxes supposedly containing the funds.

However, investigation revealed that the defendant, Mr Auwalu, made cash transactions rather than using approved financial institutions, thereby violating financial regulations.

In Nigeria, BDC operators are required by law to obtain a valid licence from the central bank before engaging in currency exchange activities. Operating a BDC without proper authorisation constitutes an offence under the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act, 2020.

Other BDC operators facing trial

Since the start of the year, the EFCC has taken action against BDC businesses operating unlawfully.

In February, a Federal High Court in Ilorin, Kwara State, convicted three illegal Bureau De Change operators: Mustapha Idris, Hassan Bala, and Ajayi Isaac. The court found them guilty of running the BDC business without license from the Central Bank of Nigeria. The judge sentenced them to varying terms of imprisonment and community service, imposed fines, and ordered the forfeiture of recovered funds to the federal government.

In the same month, a lawyer, Alexander Ozougwu, was alleged to have disguised as a registered Bureau De Change operator. He was arraigned before the Federal High Court in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, over an alleged N1.3 billion forex scam. The defendant was said to have operated a bogus investment scheme under the guise of a forex trading business, promising unrealistic returns to investors.