FG Welcomes US Sanctions on Alleged ISWAP Financiers, Reaffirms Crackdown on Terror Funding

The Federal Government has welcomed the decision of the United States to impose sanctions on individuals and companies accused of financing terrorism, describing the move as a significant boost to ongoing efforts to disrupt the financial networks sustaining extremist groups.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the Nigeria Sanctions Committee said the action by the United States Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) aligned with Nigeria's earlier designation of the affected individuals and entities on the Nigeria Sanctions List published on June 18, 2026.

According to the committee, the sanctions followed extensive intelligence gathering, financial investigations and inter-agency assessments, which established reasonable grounds to believe that the affected persons and companies facilitated, financed or otherwise supported the activities of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) and associated terrorist networks.

The committee noted that the Nigerian sanctions list named six individuals — Ibrahim Yakubu Ogirima, Muktar Muhammad Adamu, Adamu Chiroma, Ibrahim Abubakar, Abdullahi Umar Usman and Babangida Muhammed Adamu Hammajam — alongside three companies: Abbal Bako & Sons Bureau De Change Limited, Generation Currency BDC Limited and Nine to Nine BDC Limited.

It added that the United States subsequently sanctioned Muktar Muhammad Adamu, Nine to Nine Bureau De Change and Generation BDC Limited over alleged terrorism financing activities, reinforcing Nigeria's own enforcement measures.

"The Federal Government reiterates its directive to all financial institutions and designated non-financial businesses and professions to continue to comply with all sanctions obligations, including asset-freezing requirements, the filing of Suspicious Transaction Reports and the reporting of all relevant matches to the appropriate authorities," the committee said.

The committee also commended the Federal Ministry of Justice, the Office of the National Security Adviser, the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Department of State Services, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit for their collaborative efforts in investigating and enforcing sanctions against suspected terrorism financiers.

It reaffirmed Nigeria's commitment to strengthening measures against terrorism financing through sustained collaboration with domestic and international partners to safeguard the country's financial system and national security.

The development follows the US Treasury Department's announcement of sanctions against Lagos-based Bureau De Change operator Mukhtar Muhammad, also known as Mukhtar Adamu Muhammad, whom OFAC alleged facilitated financial transactions and money transfers on behalf of ISWAP.

The US agency also designated Nine To Nine Exchange Bureau De Change Limited, Generation Currency Bureau De Change Limited and Manhattan Bureau De Change Limited, alleging that the companies were owned, controlled or directed by Muhammad and were used to move funds for the terrorist organisation.

The sanctioned individuals and companies have not publicly responded to the allegations. Both the Nigerian government and the United States maintain that the measures are aimed at disrupting financial channels used to support terrorist activities and strengthening global counter-terrorism efforts.