Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission has directed capital market operators to immediately identify and freeze funds, assets and other economic resources belonging to six individuals and three entities designated by the Nigeria Sanctions Committee as terrorist financiers.

The SEC directive, issued under the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, requires capital market regulated entities to act without prior notice and report all assets frozen, compliance measures taken and attempted transactions to the Nigeria Sanctions Committee.

The six individuals named on the Nigeria Sanctions List are Babangida Muhammed Adamu Hammajam, Abdullahi Umar Usman, Ibrahim Abubakar, Adamu Chiroma, Muktar Muhammad Adamu and Yakubu Ogirima Ibrahim.

The three designated entities are Nine to Nine BDC Ltd, Generation Currency BDC Ltd and Abbal Bako & Sons Bureau de Change. The SEC said the designations relate to alleged terrorism financing activities, including the movement or facilitation of funds linked to Islamic State West Africa Province networks.

Beyond the immediate asset freeze, capital market operators have been instructed to prohibit dealings with the designated persons and entities and maintain ongoing surveillance for transactions involving them.

The SEC has also directed operators to submit suspicious transaction reports to the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit where transactions generate a name match with any person or entity on the sanctions list. The reporting obligation applies to relevant transactions conducted both before and after receipt of the sanctions list.

The directive forms part of a wider tightening of Nigeria’s counter terrorism financing controls. The Central Bank of Nigeria has separately directed banks to freeze accounts linked to designated terrorism financing subjects and strengthen monitoring for indicators including rapid movement or structuring of funds, use of bureaux de change and other money service businesses, and transactions involving high risk jurisdictions.

For compliance teams, the development raises the stakes around sanctions screening, transaction monitoring and escalation procedures. A potential match is no longer simply a screening alert requiring routine review. Where a designated person or entity is identified, the regulatory framework requires immediate action, reporting and continued monitoring.

The measures also reinforce the need for financial institutions and capital market operators to maintain effective retrospective screening capabilities. Transactions conducted before a designation may still require review where they involve a newly listed individual or entity.

Compliance impact: The SEC directive places immediate asset freezing, sanctions screening, suspicious transaction reporting and ongoing transaction surveillance at the centre of capital market compliance obligations.