The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, has revealed that Nigeria’s real estate sector has become a major conduit for laundering stolen public funds, especially by corrupt civil servants.
Speaking during a policy dialogue in Abuja on challenges plaguing the real estate ecosystem, Olukoyede emphasized that many housing estates across the country have been funded with illicit money diverted from public coffers.
The dialogue was organized by The Law Corridor, an Abuja-based law firm, and featured top stakeholders including Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) President, Mazi Afam Osigwe (SAN), and Director-General of the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Dr. Adebowale Adedokun.
The EFCC Chairman disclosed that investigations have uncovered widespread cases where civil servants invest stolen money in constructing estates. However, once they exit public office and no longer have access to illicit funds, they often abandon the projects midway.
“It will shock you that some estates have remained uncompleted and abandoned for 10 to 20 years,” Olukoyede said. “These buildings are started with looted public funds, and once the money dries up, construction halts. In many cases, developers are left to seek external investors to complete these ghost projects.”
Olukoyede added that the EFCC has already secured interim forfeiture orders on about 15 such properties, marking a significant move in its crackdown on financial crimes linked to real estate.
To strengthen its efforts, the anti-graft agency has constituted a special team that will commence a comprehensive audit of housing estates across Nigeria—not just in Abuja. The team is tasked with identifying the true owners of real estate assets and unmasking illicit wealth disguised as legitimate investment.
“What we are doing now is not limited to Abuja,” he stated. “We are going nationwide. We need to know who owns what, and how they funded these properties.”
Olukoyede highlighted that the lack of access to affordable financing in the sector has made real estate an attractive option for those looking to launder money.
“No one can borrow at over 30% interest from a Nigerian bank and still make real estate development profitable,” he explained.
“Projects sometimes take up to five years to complete. So clearly, most of the money used isn’t from loans—it’s dirty money.”
To curb this trend, he proposed the creation of special government-backed funding schemes for real estate, with low-interest rates. Institutions like the Federal Mortgage Bank and Aso Savings & Loans, he said, should be empowered to offer single-digit loans to genuine developers.
Olukoyede also lamented Nigeria’s overreliance on a cash-based economy, which he believes is a major enabler of corruption.
“In Nigeria, people pay for everything in cash—cars, houses, even school fees abroad. We can’t build a modern economy that way,” he stated. “We must transition to a credit-based transactional system, as done in other countries.”
He called for the full activation of the Beneficial Ownership Register, which will help track the real individuals behind corporate entities, especially those investing heavily in real estate.
In a striking revelation, Olukoyede shared how suspects often confess to wrongdoing out of desperation.
“They come and say, ‘Yes, I did it. There was no other way to pay my children’s school fees.’ At that point, the investigator becomes helpless. This tells you how broken our system is.”
Mazi Afam Osigwe (SAN), President of the Nigerian Bar Association, described Nigeria’s land ownership verification process as archaic and opaque.
“In countries like the UK, you can confirm property ownership online after paying a small fee. Here, you must physically present a certificate of occupancy before anyone believes the property is yours,” he said.
He called for digital reforms to land registry systems and legal frameworks that will ensure transparency and reduce opportunities for fraud.
Dr. Adebowale Adedokun, Director-General of the Bureau of Public Procurement, noted that corruption in the public procurement process is a key driver of money laundering in real estate.
“Many people divert excess funds from inflated contracts. The gap between the real cost of a project and what is budgeted becomes the laundering capital,” he said. “Since they can’t deposit that money in banks, they channel it into unregulated sectors like real estate.”
He disclosed that the BPP, in collaboration with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), is working to ensure that contracts awarded are tied directly to measurable performance indicators to prevent misuse.
The policy dialogue also explored practical solutions across three thematic areas:
1. Tackling illegal property sales, fake developers, and unlicensed agents
2. Ensuring compliance with anti-money laundering standards
3. Enhancing access to legal remedies for real estate investors
The stakeholders jointly agreed that unless urgent systemic reforms are enacted—particularly in land administration, funding structures, and anti-corruption enforcement—the real estate sector will remain a magnet for illicit finance.