Nigeria Emefiele Trial Probes US$94 Million Withdrawal
NIGERIA · JUSTICE
Key Facts
- —The country Nigeria is a West African oil producer and a US trading partner, with Abuja as its capital and the naira as its currency.
- —What happened On Tuesday, 6 October, a finance ministry director told an Abuja court that a N124.86 billion (about US$94 million) withdrawal bypassed his ministry.
- —Who is on trial Godwin Emefiele ran the Central Bank of Nigeria until President Bola Tinubu suspended him in June 2023; he denies all four counts.
- —The charge Count four says he approved the withdrawal from the federal government’s main account around 7 October 2020, in a manner parliament never prescribed.
- —Why it matters The Emefiele trial tests whether Nigeria can hold a former central bank chief to account, a signal that foreign investors and lenders watch.
- —Still open A central bank official said in May the money settled the bank’s own debts; the defence has yet to cross-examine Tuesday’s witness.
A witness at the Emefiele trial said on Tuesday, 6 October, that Nigeria’s central bank withdrew N124.86 billion (about US$94 million) on its own. Ali Mohammed, a finance ministry director, told an Abuja court that neither his ministry nor the government’s chief accountant knew of it.
For US and other foreign investors, the Emefiele trial tests whether Nigeria can hold a former central bank chief to account for public money. Godwin Emefiele, who led the bank until June 2023, has pleaded not guilty to all four counts against him.
What the Witness Told the Court
Mohammed was the 10th prosecution witness before Justice Maryanne Anenih of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, which tries serious crimes in Abuja. He said he supervises three divisions in the ministry’s Home Finance unit, according to Daily Post.
He said a special investigator, appointed by President Bola Tinubu to probe the central bank under Emefiele, wrote to the ministry about the money. Tinubu took office in 2023, succeeding Muhammadu Buhari.
Mohammed called an emergency meeting of the three division heads, and all of them denied any knowledge of the withdrawal. He then wrote, through the ministry’s permanent secretary, to the Accountant-General of the Federation, who runs the federal government’s accounts.
That office also denied knowing of the transaction and concluded that the central bank must have carried it out, he said. The ministry’s records class it as a direct debit by the bank, TheCable reported.
“Direct debit means it was withdrawn from the Central Bank of Nigeria without recourse of any office in Nigeria,” Mohammed said, according to TheCable. The judge admitted the letters as exhibits after Emefiele’s lawyer, Olalekan Ojo, raised no objection.
Ojo is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, the top rank for lawyers in the country. Earlier, Hamisu Abdullahi, director of banking services at the central bank and the ninth witness, continued his evidence, TheCable reported.
He described an email carrying the then governor’s directive to recover a N1.4 billion (about US$1.05 million) debit from the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
The Charge Behind the Money
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Nigeria’s main anti-corruption agency, brings the case. The agency is led by its executive chairman, Ola Olukoyede.
Count four accuses Emefiele of approving the withdrawal of N124,860,227,865.16 (about US$94 million) from the Consolidated Revenue Fund on or about 7 October 2020. That fund is the federal government’s main account.
Naira amounts in this article are converted at about 1,328 naira to the US dollar on 7 October 2026. At the central bank’s official rate of 379.50 naira per dollar on 7 October 2020, the sum was worth about US$329 million then.
The EFCC says it broke Section 80 of the constitution, as it was made “in a manner not prescribed by the National Assembly”, the parliament. The full charge was published by Daily Trust in May 2024.
The other three counts concern the naira redesign of 2022 and 2023. They accuse him of approving the printing of colour-swapped versions of the three largest banknotes without a board recommendation or the president’s “strict approval”.
Those three print runs cost a combined N18.96 billion (about US$14.3 million), according to the charge. The largest run, N11.05 billion (about US$8.3 million), covered 375.52 million of the highest-value notes.
Emefiele pleaded not guilty to all four counts on 15 May 2024 and was granted bail of N300 million (about US$226,000), Daily Post reported. The Emefiele trial began later that year.
In January 2026, Justice Anenih set ten hearing dates to finish the case by June, according to Daily Post. The Emefiele trial is still running in October.
Why the Naira Redesign Still Matters
Emefiele announced the redesign of the three largest notes on 26 October 2022, with a 31 January 2023 deadline for old ones. The central bank defended the swap as one way to curb vote buying before the 2023 elections, Daily Trust reported.
Cash ran short, and violent protests broke out in many parts of the country as banks and cash machines were vandalised and burnt. The Supreme Court later cancelled the deadline and kept the old notes as legal tender.
Not all of the prosecution’s evidence cuts one way. Under cross-examination in January 2026, an EFCC investigator said the presidency under Buhari had approved the redesign, provided the notes were printed locally.
Tinubu suspended Emefiele on 9 June 2023, citing an investigation of his office and planned financial reforms, Daily Post reported. The current governor, Olayemi Cardoso, has since overseen sweeping naira reforms.
What It Means for US Readers
For US investors, the Emefiele trial offers a rare look at how Nigeria’s central bank handled public money under its previous governor. It also tests whether courts can hold a former governor to account for decisions taken in office.
The trade stakes are real. The US exported US$6.78 billion of goods to Nigeria in 2025 and imported US$5.02 billion, according to the US Census Bureau.
Nigeria’s record on financial crime matters to US lenders and investors. In October 2025, the Financial Action Task Force, the global anti-money-laundering watchdog, removed Nigeria from its list of countries under increased monitoring.
On 17 July 2026, the Supreme Court made final the forfeiture of seven properties, US$2,045,000 and share certificates linked to Emefiele, Daily Trust reported. The courts found them reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activity.
Emefiele also faces a 19-count charge in Lagos over transactions of about US$4.5 billion and N2.8 billion (about US$2.1 million), which he denies. That trial stalled on the same Tuesday because he was attending the Abuja case, Nigerian Tribune reported.
What Is Not Known
In May, central bank official Hamisu Abdullahi told the court the money settled the bank’s “internal debts”, Premium Times reported. Reports of the hearings do not say which debts, and the published charge gives only the date, the amount and the account.
Emefiele’s lawyers have not yet questioned Mohammed, so his account remains untested in the Emefiele trial. The January plan to finish the trial by June has slipped, and no new end date has been reported.
What Happens Next
Justice Anenih adjourned the Emefiele trial to Wednesday, 7 October, for the defence to cross-examine Mohammed, The Nigeria Lawyer reported. The Lagos case resumes on 11 November.
Emefiele remains presumed innocent, and the prosecution must prove each count. Testimony so far in the Emefiele trial comes from prosecution witnesses.
More: Nigeria news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Godwin Emefiele?
He was governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria until President Bola Tinubu suspended him on 9 June 2023. He led the redesign of the currency in 2022 and now faces several criminal trials, and he denies the charges.
What did the witness say at the Emefiele trial?
Ali Mohammed, a finance ministry director, said a N124.86 billion (about US$94 million) withdrawal from the main federal account did not pass through his ministry. He said the Accountant-General’s office also denied knowledge and concluded the central bank made it.
What is Emefiele charged with in this case?
He faces four counts of disobeying the law: three over printing redesigned naira notes without board and presidential approval, and one over the 2020 withdrawal. He pleaded not guilty to all four in May 2024.
Why does the Emefiele trial matter to US investors?
It tests central bank governance and the rule of law in a market that bought US$6.78 billion of US goods in 2025. It also comes a year after Nigeria left the global anti-money-laundering watchdog’s increased-monitoring list.
What happens next in the Emefiele trial?
The judge adjourned the case to Wednesday, 7 October, for the defence to cross-examine the witness. Emefiele’s separate Lagos trial resumes on 11 November.
Sources: TheCable, 6 October 2026; Premium Times, 6 October 2026; Daily Post, 6 October 2026; The Nigeria Lawyer, 6 October 2026; Nigerian Tribune, 6 October 2026; Daily Trust (charge sheet), 15 May 2024; Daily Post (plea and bail), 15 May 2024; Daily Post (trial dates), 28 January 2026; Daily Post (suspension), 9 June 2023; Daily Trust (Supreme Court forfeiture), 17 July 2026; US Census Bureau, trade with Nigeria, accessed 7 October 2026; Financial Action Task Force, 24 October 2025; Daily Post (EFCC chairman), 2 October 2026; Daily Trust (CBN governor), 17 July 2026; Central Bank of Nigeria, official exchange rates, 7 October 2020 and 6 October 2026.
Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief · Editorial standards · Report an error
Part of our ongoing coverage
Africa: The New Scramble — the great-power contest over the continent.