Was $56 Million Really Stolen from Ethiopia’s Top Bank?
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The Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) has denied reports of a large-scale internal theft involving over 7.7 billion Ethiopian birr (approximately $56 million), asserting that its internal systems intercepted a fraud attempt before any funds were lost.
The state-owned lender issued the clarification following allegations reported by multiple media outlets.
The reports claimed that a coordinated scheme involving CBE employees, government officials, and private companies resulted in the unauthorized transfer of billions of birr, including 4 billion reportedly routed to Kerchanshe Trading Plc, a well-known coffee exporter.
CBE responded by categorically rejecting the claims, stating that “no money was stolen” and that “a suspicious transaction was detected within minutes of the attempt.”
The bank said it had halted the operation before any financial damage occurred, adding that several suspects had been apprehended and were under investigation by law enforcement.
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The bank also clarified that the incident was not related to a cybersecurity breach or technical failure but was instead an attempt by a group of individuals to gain unauthorized access to internal funds.
“The attempt was not an attack on our bank’s system, but rather an effort by a few suspects to gain undue advantage,” the bank stated.
This is not the first time the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia has faced scrutiny over fraud and internal controls. In March 2024, the bank admitted to losing over six billion birr due to a “system failure” that allowed 490,000 unauthorized transactions over a single 24-hour period.
In addition, a 2022 Ministry of Justice report revealed that CBE had accounted for nearly half of all fraud-related losses in Ethiopia’s banking sector between 2018 and 2022, around 900 million birr out of a total of 1.8 billion birr.
Further compounding the issue, the National Bank of Ethiopia’s (NBE) 2023/24 Financial Stability Report showed a rise in sector-wide fraud losses, from 1 billion birr in the previous year to 1.3 billion birr, with CBE highlighted as a primary target due to its dominant position in the market.
The bank holds over 60% of the country’s total deposits and serves more than 38 million account holders.
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In a statement, CBE emphasized the effectiveness of its internal controls and described the incident as proof of the system’s responsiveness.
“Like any large financial institution, CBE is a regular target for attempted fraud,” the bank said, adding that the incident demonstrated the strength and responsiveness of its oversight mechanisms.
The bank noted that the investigation is ongoing and that it will release more information once legal proceedings are complete. No further timeline has been given for public disclosure.
Jefferson Wachira is a writer at Africa Digest News, specializing in banking and finance trends, and their impact on African economies.
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