Details As Tunde Ayeni Is Slammed With 17 Charges Over Alleged N15.6bn Fraud

Former Chairman of the defunct Skye Bank Plc, Tunde Ayeni, was on Monday arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, before Justice Jude Onwuzuruike of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, High Court, Apo, Abuja, over an alleged N15.6 billion fraud.

According to details released by the anti-graft agency, Ayeni was docked on a 17-count charge bordering on criminal breach of trust, misappropriation and conversion of investors’ funds amounting to N15,665,085,429.

The prosecution, led by E.E. Iheanacho, SAN, told the court that the matter was for arraignment and that the prosecution was fully prepared to proceed to trial.

“We have before the court a 17-count charge dated April 28, 2026, we humbly apply that the charge be read to the defendant,” Iheanacho said.

The charges mark one of the most high-profile financial crime cases in recent times involving a former top banking executive and centre on allegations that Ayeni, while serving as Chairman of Skye Bank’s Board of Directors, unlawfully diverted huge sums from depositors’ funds lodged in the bank’s suspense accounts in violation of prudential banking regulations.

In count three, the EFCC alleged that Ayeni, between October 21, 2014 and November 19, 2014, dishonestly misappropriated N3,201,535,429.42 from Skye Bank’s suspense account by transferring the funds into accounts belonging to Misa Limited domiciled with Zenith Bank.

The charge stated that the transaction was carried out “in violation of the Prudential Guidelines and other regulations,” an act said to contravene Section 311 of the Penal Code and punishable under Section 312.

Count five further accused him of allegedly misappropriating N5,078,550,000 on or about November 27, 2014, by transferring the funds from the bank’s suspense account into Union Registrars Limited’s account with Union Bank, also in breach of banking regulations.

The anti-graft agency said the alleged offences were committed while Ayeni had dominion over depositors’ funds, raising fresh concerns over corporate governance lapses and abuse of fiduciary responsibility in Nigeria’s banking sector during the era of troubled legacy institutions.

When the charges were read, Ayeni pleaded not guilty to all 17 counts.

Following his plea, prosecution counsel urged the court to fix a date for trial and requested that the defendant be remanded in a correctional facility pending further proceedings.

Defence counsel, Ahmed Raji Bashir, SAN, however, informed the court that the charges were served on his client on a public holiday, which he said was important for the court to note. He subsequently appealed to the court to either release Ayeni to his legal team or return him to EFCC custody.

After listening to both sides, Justice Onwuzuruike adjourned the matter till May 13, 2026, for hearing of the bail application.

The court also ordered that Ayeni be remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre pending the determination of his bail request.

The arraignment represents another major test of the EFCC’s sustained scrutiny of alleged financial misconduct in Nigeria’s banking industry, particularly involving former directors and executives of defunct financial institutions whose operations once shaped the country’s economic landscape.

For Ayeni, once a prominent figure in Nigeria’s corporate and banking circles, the legal battle now shifts to whether he can secure bail as prosecutors push forward with one of the biggest alleged fraud cases tied to depositor funds.