As bank frauds and insider crimes continue to rise in Nigeria's banking sector, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission EFCC says it is not compulsory for Nigerians to own bank accounts.

Bawa Usman, zonal head of the EFCC in Sokoto, made the comments on Tuesday at a roundtable with compliance officers of commercial banks.

According to him “Nearly 40 per cent of Americans do not have accounts. So, it is not very compulsory for everybody in Nigeria to have a bank account.”

Mr Usman, whose zone covers Sokoto, Kebbi, and Zamfara went on to lament that banks often frustrated the EFCC’s investigations as they delayed replying to its letters.

“Such delays jeopardise our investigation. Financial institutions must collaborate with us toward curtailing money laundering, illegal financing, and other illicit flows of money.

“The meeting is a response to the directive of the EFCC leadership. It is one of numerous strategies toward fighting all manners of corruption.

“The commission strives to ensure that fraudsters do not get away with proceeds of crimes undetected. To achieve this, we are appealing to all banks to facilitate a better working relationship with the anti-graft agency,” he explained.

He urged bankers to improve ways of tracking illicit finances and transactions, stressing that point of service operators or money agents needed to be well-informed on financial regulations.

Mr Usman told the banks to ensure that eligible customers obtain Special Control Unit Against Money Laundering (SCUML) numbers, stressing the need to review their data registers to ensure compliance.