The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has uncovered a significant debit card fraud scheme perpetrated by 551 Equity Bank customers, resulting in the theft of KES 179,677,736 over a seven-day period.
The fraudulent transactions, which also saw KES 63,023,983 transferred to Safaricom’s M-Pesa and KES 99,047,344 to eleven other commercial banks, have prompted the central bank to take immediate action.
According to a letter seen by Sharp Daily and addressed to Equity Bank on April 15th, 2024, the CBK’s risk department detected a sudden surge in suspicious transactions emanating from the bank’s incoming MasterCard general ledger (GL) on April 15th.
Subsequent investigations revealed that the 551 Equity Bank account holders had received the stolen funds through fraudulent debit card transactions carried out between April 9th and April 15th.
“Early 15/04/2024 the bank’s risk department discovered an upsurge of transactions emanating from the banks incoming MasterCard GL,” the letter stated. “Preliminary investigations revealed that between 09/04/2024 and 15/04/2024, KES 179,677,736 was paid out from the GL fraudulently to the 551 Equity Bank accounts.”
In response, the CBK has taken immediate action, liaising with Safaricom and the respective commercial banks to trace the movement of the funds and ensure their safeguarding. Additionally, the central bank has placed a lien on KES 60,733,087 held in the 551 accounts involved in the fraud scheme.
“We are in touch with Safaricom and respective banks to assist in tracing the movement and safeguarding the funds,” the letter stated. “The bank has also liened KES 60,733,087 in the 551 accounts.”
The CBK has requested further investigations to apprehend and prosecute the perpetrators responsible for the massive debit card fraud, emphasizing the need for strong collaboration and support from Equity Bank.
“We request for further investigations with a view of apprehending and and prosecuting the perpetrators,” the letter concluded.
