EFCC, DNFBPs strengthen partnership to combat money laundering, terrorist financing

Stanley Ihedigbo

Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has intensified efforts to combat money laundering and terrorist financing by strengthening its partnership with Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs).

The collaboration aimed to prevent the exploitation of DNFBPs by illicit actors and enhance the integrity of Nigeria’s financial system.

According to the Head, Media and Publicity, EFCC, Mr Dele Oyewale
This agreement was reached recently when the newly appointed Director of the Special Control Unit against Money Laundering (SCUML), Harry Erin, paid strategic courtesy visits to critical stakeholders, including the Association of Trustees and Segilola Resources Operating Limited, among others on April 2 and 3, 2025.

The theme of the separate engagements was “ Strengthening Strategic Partnerships for Effective AML/CFT Compliance: Exiting the FATF Grey List and Beyond.”

During his engagement with the leadership of the Nigerian Network of NGOs ( NNNGO), a national platform with over 4,000 members, discussions centered on building the capacity of Non-Profit Organizations (NPOs), simplifying compliance processes, and developing accessible templates to help NPOs fulfill their AML/CFT obligations with greater ease and consistency.

In another engagement, Erin lauded the ongoing regulatory compliance clinic as well as the advocacy efforts of Space for Change, a prominent civic group operating within the digital and civil society space.

He said: “ These initiatives have been helping to close the knowledge gaps and improve regulatory engagements among the NGOs.”

Also speaking during a visit to the Lagos State Gaming and Lottery Authority, Erin reaffirmed SCUML’s commitment to fostering compliance efficiency through strategic partnerships, while emphasizing the need to balance it “with firm enforcement and sanctioning of non-compliant entities.”

According to him, “ exiting the FATF grey list is not the final destination, but rather a springboard for entrenching sustainable reforms across all Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs)”

Both the EFCC and the LSLGA explored opportunities for collaboration in market entry controls, supervision, and harmonization of compliance protocols to curb illicit financial flows in the gaming sector.

In the same vein, the Association of Chief Compliance Officers of Banks in Nigeria, ACCOBIN, during an engagement with the SCUML Director, acknowledged what it described as “SCUML’s evolving role in the compliance ecosystem.”

The Association, however, sought a more robust outreach and engagement with the EFCC to enhance alignment and implementation of regulatory expectations by banking compliance professionals in the country.