The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project has instituted legal proceedings against the Central Bank of Nigeria over alleged failure to account for N3trillion in public funds, including over N629billion said to have been disbursed to “unknown beneficiaries” through the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme.
The civil society organisation’s Deputy Director, Mr Kolawole Oluwadare, made this known in a statement on Sunday.
According to the statement, the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/250/2026 was lodged at the Federal High Court, Abuja, last week.
SERAP disclosed that the legal action was prompted by damning revelations in the Auditor-General of the Federation’s latest annual report, which was released on September 9, 2025.
The organisation said it is seeking a court order compelling the apex bank to provide full disclosure of the alleged missing funds and detailed explanations of their utilisation.
The rights group contended that the purported infractions amount to a betrayal of public trust and are inconsistent with provisions of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the CBN Act, and extant anti-corruption laws.
In a post on its official social media handle, SERAP stated, “We’ve sued @cenbank over failure to account for and explain the whereabouts of the missing or diverted N3trillion of public funds, including the over N629billion paid to ‘unknown beneficiaries’ as part of the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme.
“The lawsuit followed the grave allegations contained in the latest annual report by the Auditor-General of the Federation, which was published on September 9, 2025.”
The statement added, “In the suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/250/2026 filed last week at the Federal High Court in Abuja, we are seeking an order of mandamus to direct and compel the CBN to account for and explain the whereabouts of the missing or diverted N3trillion of public funds, including detailed reports of how exactly the funds were spent.
“These grim allegations by the Auditor-General suggest grave violations of the public trust, the provisions of the Nigerian Constitution 1999 (as amended), the CBN Act, and anti-corruption standards.”
SERAP further argued that the alleged breaches demonstrate systemic failures in the CBN’s accountability mechanisms and underscore the institution’s continued non-compliance with its enabling Act and fundamental principles of transparency and accountability.
