Idris Olayiwola, a former Information Technology officer (ICT) at Globus Bank, has described the bank’s fraud allegation against him as false and untrue.
Olayiwola, on Monday, via his X handle denied the allegation claiming he siphoned money from customers’ accounts while working at the bank and after his exit.
Recall that last year, the bank had raised alarm over the hacking of its systems, citing a few of its former employees who worked in the ICT department, thereby filing a lawsuit to freeze multiple bank accounts said to have been linked with the alleged suspects before notifying the Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
In EFCC’s affidavit in support deposed to by Samson Oloje, its Litigation Clerk, the anti-graft agency acknowledged an intelligence report on the actions of former staff of the bank said to have allegedly gained access into the bank systems and shawls N3.5bn of money belonging to customers.
Upon receipt of the intelligence report, Globus Bank was invited wherein one Monday Edward, the bank’s Head of Internal Audit/Chief Inspector thereby affirmed in a voluntary statement that the system of the bank was hacked.
He noted that the intelligence report was given to the Advance Fee Fraud Section of the EFCC with a probe revealing three ICT staff of the bank committed the siphon before their exit from the bank.
He mentioned Idris Olayiwola, Chinedu Ihuma, and Igwe George Benedict Obinna, to have allegedly executed the fraud and are abreast of the platform’s working details and understand how to gain access to all the accounts of the bank.
“That one Babatunde Idris Olayiwola a former staff of Globus who is an ICT expert, who created all the software platforms the bank is using in its daily operational business introduced one Chinedu lhuma to Globus Bank when the former was about to exit the bank.
“That Chinedu Ihuma, a former staff of Globus Bank was also an ICT expert introduced to the Bank by Babatunde Olayiwole to oversee the ICT software operational platforms created by Babatunde Olayiwola for the Bank. He also introduced one Igwe George Benedict Obinna to the bank to take over and oversee the ICT software operational platforms when the former was about to exit the bank.
“That investigation reveals that Babatunde Idris Olayiwola, Chinedu Inuma and Igwe George Benedict Obinna hacked into the computer systems of Globus Bank and they transferred monies over three billion, five hundred million Naira (N3,500,000,000) from the account of the Bank into various account belonging to Haril Global Solutions Ltd and affiliate different bank accounts domicile in various banks across the country.
“That further investigation reveals that the fraud was perpetrated through the login details of Igwe George Benedict Obinna which he shared with the duo of Babatunde Idris Olayiwola and Chinedu Ihuma,” he stated in his affidavit.
Olayiwola said while working with Computer Warehouse Group (CWG) in January 2019, he was assigned the Globus Bank Core Banking Application Project.
However, Olayiwola, in his response shared on X, noted that in January 2019, while working at Computer Warehouse Group, he shouldered Globus Bank core banking application project and when he and his team began the project, the bank went live with the Core Banking Application in November 2019.
“Upon completion of the project, the Managing Director of the bank, Elias Igbinakenzua, and other top executives of the bank approached me with an offer, which I accepted to oversee their Core Banking Application processes. I officially joined the bank in January 2021.”
According to him, the fear for his career made him exit the bank, adding that “I received an offer from KPMG as an Assistant Manager in the Technology and Enablement Department as a Project Manager. I accepted a pay cut to join KPMG in September 2021. My primary reason for leaving was simple: I feared for my life and career as a young man with all the things happening at Globus Bank.
He said the primary reason for his exit at the bank was due to its shady and unethical transactions at the top level, which he and other top executives were exposed to.
“I did not threaten to expose these when I left. My goal was to work in a safe environment where I could grow in my career, which is why I moved to KPMG.
“When the Managing Director of the bank received news of my departure, he was very angry and offered me a lucrative salary, which I declined. In September 2021, I joined KPMG, and my relationship with Globus Bank ended there. KPMG was the best place I worked in my entire career.”
After his exit from Nigeria to the United Kingdom in 2022, he added that he continued to work with KPMG until he officially resigned in September 2022, and “since then, I have been in the UK.”
He questioned the bank allegations, saying “How can this be possible when I have been in the UK since May 2022?”
He added that his only relationship with the bank since leaving was having a bank account like any other customer.
“Also, it was claimed that I took over a staff password to post transactions. Even at the bank branch level, access to the bank vault or to post transactions was given to two staff members.
“Not only that back-end servers behind the network firewalls but there are also operational procedures and guidelines to ensure no single staff or IT officer has access at any point in time.
“I am surprised at the manner of allegations coming from an organisation dealing with people’s assets. There is no financial institution anywhere in the world or in Nigeria where a single individual will be given access to critical servers or applications in the bank,” added.
Stating further in the statement shared on X, he said, “In December 2023, I noticed an unsolicited account being opened for me at Globus Bank. I received an email about the account opening and immediately informed the bank that I did not authorize it.
As someone who has worked in the bank, I suspect there must be some malpractice going on wherein accounts can be opened for individuals without their authorisation. I sent messages to the bank to inform them I did not authorise the opening of any account for me as I don’t need it.
“I was advised to instigate a lawsuit against them for such a scary act. I do not know the purpose behind these actions. I believe someone in the bank perpetrated fraud and looked for an exit plan. As of now, I have not received any call or invitation from the bank or any law enforcement agency regarding these accusations.
All I have seen is that the professional reputation and career I am building are being ruined by some individuals who place no value on individual industries.
“Globus Bank may wish to hide some frauds and reckless unethical crises within their organisation, but implicating me is ungodly. Globus Bank was not the last organization I worked for in Nigeria. I left Globus Bank in 2021, as such the attempt to soil my time and reputation with the bank is evil.”
He said the accusations against him must be addressed with the truth, stressing that his professional journey has been one of dedication, integrity, and hard work.
“I refuse to be a scapegoat for the unethical practices of others. If necessary, I will expose the truth with concrete evidence, supported by testimonies from former top executives of Globus Bank who share my concerns.
My reputation, built on years of honest work, will not be tarnished by these false claims. I stand ready to defend my name and set the record straight,” he concluded.
