Data protection rules are one reason prior attempts at forming an anti-fraud posse failed. But everyone knows the real reason is that leaders of fintech firms simply don’t trust each other.
After an ₦11 billion fraud case hit eTranzact in 2018, several senior leaders of the online payments company—one of Nigeria’s oldest—elected to resign. eTranzact’s managing director, Valentine Obi, chief technology officer, Richard Omoniyi and head of operations, Kehinde Segun stepped down from their roles alongside two executive directors.
The eTranzact affair—which was perpetrated by the chief executive of a client firm—bears little resemblance to the numerous fraud attempts payments companies in Nigeria face today. Instead, the significance of the news in 2018, to anyone paying attention, was that tech-enabled financial services fraud could be very costly. ₦11 billion in 2018 was the equivalent of almost $31 million. It also highlighted the fact that fintech firms…