The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Monday arraigned former Chairman of the defunct Skye Bank Plc, Tunde Ayeni, over alleged fraud involving N15.6 billion.
The Commission disclosed this in a statement released via its X handle on Monday.
EFCC said Ayeni was brought before Justice Jude Onwuzuruike of the Federal Capital Territory High Court sitting in Apo, Abuja, on a 17-count charge bordering on criminal breach of trust, misappropriation, and conversion of investors’ funds.
What they are saying
According to the anti-graft agency, the alleged offences involve a total sum of N15,665,085,429, said to have been diverted while Ayeni served as chairman of the bank.
Prosecution counsel, E.E. Iheanacho, SAN, told the court that the matter was slated for arraignment and that the prosecution was ready to proceed to trial. He subsequently urged the court to allow the charges to be read.
- “We have before the court 17-count charge dated April 28, 2026, we humbly apply that the charge be read to the defendant”, he said.
One of the counts presented before the court alleged that Ayeni, between October and November 2014, misappropriated N3.2 billion from depositors’ funds held in the bank’s suspense account, transferring the money to accounts linked to Misa Limited in violation of banking regulations.
Another count accused him of diverting N5.07 billion to an account belonging to Union Registrars Limited under similar circumstances, also in breach of prudential guidelines.
Defendant pleads not guilty
Ayeni pleaded not guilty to all 17 counts when they were read in court. Following his plea, the prosecution requested a trial date and urged the court to remand the defendant in a correctional facility pending the commencement of trial.
- Defence counsel, Ahmed Raji Bashir, SAN, informed the court that the charge was served on the defendant on a public holiday, noting that this was important for the court’s consideration.
- He also urged the court to either release Ayeni to his custody or return him to the custody of the EFCC.
In his ruling, Justice Onwuzuruike adjourned the matter to May 13, 2026, for the hearing of the bail application.
The court further ordered that Ayeni be remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre pending the determination of his bail request.
Backstory
The EFCC had in 2019 initiated legal action against the former Chairman of Skye Bank, Ayeni and its former Managing Director, Timothy Oguntayo, due to mismanagement of funds.
Ayeni and Oguntayo were hit with a ten-count charge bordering on money laundering and illegal transfer of cash, which was reportedly claimed as the reason the Nigerian lender went into financial distress.
It was stated that as much as N25.3 billion cash was allegedly taken out of the defunct bank by the key players, a development that many believed contributed to the financial distress of the bank and its eventual fall.
What you should know
Earlier in 2018, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had revoked the operating license of the now-defunct Skye Bank Plc.
The CBN disclosed that the result of its examinations and forensic audit of the bank revealed that the bank required urgent recapitalization, as it could no longer continue to live on borrowed time with indefinite liquidity support from the CBN. Shareholders were, however, unable to recapitalize it.
In consultation with the Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), the apex bank created a bridge bank, Polaris Bank, which the Asset Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON) was to recapitalize.
