By Seun Ibiyemi
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has launched a 10-day specialised training programme on asset tracing and cryptocurrency investigations in partnership with the South Korean Police to strengthen Nigeria’s capacity to combat sophisticated financial crimes.
The training, which commenced on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, at the EFCC Academy in Karu, Abuja, is being attended by more than 30 operatives of the commission.
The programme is designed to equip investigators with the technical skills required to trace cryptocurrency transactions, track illicit funds across digital platforms and gather evidence for prosecution.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, represented by the Acting Commandant of the EFCC Academy, Assistant Commander of the EFCC, Joseph Ogwiji, said the growing use of digital financial services and virtual assets had made continuous professional development essential for investigators.
He warned that although emerging technologies support legitimate economic activities, criminals could exploit them to facilitate fraud, transfer proceeds of crime and conceal their identities.
“While these technologies support legitimate economic activity, they can also be exploited to facilitate fraud, transfer criminal proceeds and conceal the identities of those involved. Our response must be informed, technically competent and grounded in lawful investigative procedures,” he said.
Olukoyede stressed that the increasing cross-border dimension of financial crimes and money laundering required investigators to develop the ability to interpret transaction records, follow funds across multiple platforms and connect digital evidence to individuals under investigation.
He said these capabilities were critical to strengthening the commission’s efforts to tackle economic and financial crimes and recover proceeds of illegal activities.
The Consul and Police Attaché at the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Nigeria, Eun-pyo Hong, described the programme as the first of its kind to be conducted by the Korean Government in Africa.
He said the training also marked the first anniversary of the memorandum of understanding signed between the EFCC and the Korean National Police Agency (KNPA) in Seoul, South Korea, in October 2025.
“I am especially pleased that our first programme in Africa is taking place here in Nigeria, a leading country in West Africa. And I am also very pleased to start this programme with the EFCC, one of Nigeria’s most respected law-enforcement institutions,” Hong said.
The memorandum was signed by Olukoyede and the Deputy Commissioner General of the KNPA, Park Seong-Ju.
It provides a framework for cooperation in information exchange, sharing of best practices, capacity building, institutional strengthening, research collaboration, asset recovery coordination, public education and training exchanges, among other areas.
The leader of the South Korean training team from the Korean Police Investigation Academy of the KNPA, Woosung Kwon, thanked the EFCC management for its hospitality and cooperation.
Kwon, whose team includes Inspector Kim Sung Jae and Sergeant Jung Youngmo, said the rapid evolution of financial crimes had made international cooperation increasingly important.
“Financial crime is changing fast, criminals now use crypto, cross-chain tools, and the dark web to hide money. We came to learn from your cases and your experience. Crypto crime has no borders, so our cooperation must have no borders, too,” he said.
He explained that the training would include practical sessions on open-source investigation techniques and cryptocurrency tracing, covering the process from identifying initial leads to seizing assets and preparing evidence for court.
The programme is expected to improve participants’ ability to investigate transactions involving virtual assets and pursue funds concealed through increasingly sophisticated digital methods.
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The Head of External Cooperation at the EFCC, Aliyu Wali, said strengthening investigators’ capacity to trace, analyse and investigate virtual asset transactions had become imperative as criminals increasingly exploited emerging technologies.
He said the training would improve officers’ technical capabilities and reinforce the commission’s efforts to combat cyber-enabled financial crimes and recover criminal proceeds.
The partnership underscores the growing importance of international law-enforcement cooperation in investigating cryptocurrency-related offences, where transactions can cross jurisdictions and digital assets can be moved through multiple platforms.
