The rapid growth of Mobile Financial Services (MFS) remains a key driver of increased financial inclusion in emerging markets today considering the high penetration of mobile phones in Nigeria, (68.9% of Nigerian adults own mobile phones). With the emergence of new advanced technology and creative business processes, quite a number of dynamic financial services/products have been introduced into the financial market, however, there are several risks attached. The threat of fraud in financial services is becoming complex and sophisticated as fraudsters are devising new ways of hampering the financial system. According to the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement Systems (NIBSS) Fraud Landscape in Nigeria report for 2018, the fraud volume is the highest since 2014 with mobile channel fraud taking the lead in both fraud volume and actual loss value in 2018.

In response to the growing rate of mobile channel fraud in Nigeria, EFInA organized the first edition of the Mobile Payments Fraud Forum titled “Building Trust to increase Uptake and Usage” in June 2019. The primary objective of the Mobile Payments Fraud Forum is to provide guidance on the types, trends and fraud management strategies in mobile financial services as well as highlight key fraud issues for resolution. In attendance were Regulators, Mobile Payments Service Providers, Security operatives and other key stakeholders in the financial industry. Key topic issues raised at the forum were as follows:

• The overwhelming increase in the rate of Sim Swap Fraud
• The lack of a shared fraud information platform where service providers can access fraud data real time

The following presentations were made at the event:

• An Overview of Mobile Payments Fraud in Nigeria – ‘’Building Trust in Mobile Financial Services to improve Uptake and Usage’’ by EFInA
• ‘’Anti-fraud, Cyber Security and Consumer Protection in Mobile Money – Global Best Practices’’ by GSMA