Reps Query CBN, FRC, KPMG, EY Over Alleged Irregularities in Audited Accounts

– Demands CBN’s 2024, 2025 financial statements, seeks FRC’s reviewSunday EhigiatorThe House of Representatives Committee on Delegated Legislation has queried the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRC) and audit firms KPMG and Ernst & Young (EY) over alleged irregularities in the apex bank’s 2024 and 2025 audited financial statements.The committee, in separate letters dated September 22, 2026 and signed by its Chairman, Hon. Olufemi Richard Bamisile, demanded relevant financial documents and explanations from the institutions, while also requesting the full analysis prepared by President Bola Tinubu’s former Special Investigator, Jim Obazee.The move followed concerns raised by Obazee during the commissioning of the FRC headquarters in Lagos on September 1, where he reportedly called for the withdrawal and restatement of the CBN’s 2025 audited accounts over alleged irregularities.The committee requested the CBN to submit its summary consolidated and separate financial statements for 2024 and 2025, as well as the full audited versions of the statements for both years.It also asked KPMG and EY, the audit firms responsible for auditing the CBN’s accounts, to provide copies of the full consolidated and separate financial statements for 2024 and 2025.In its letter to the FRC, the committee requested copies of the 2025 audited accounts reviewed by the Council, its own assessment of the accounts, approvals given to the CBN in respect of the financial statements and its position on the concerns raised by Obazee.“In view of your role as the supreme regulator in the country, as enshrined in sections 7(2a), 8(1a, b, d, e, f, g, h, and n), and 59 of the FRC Act 2011, empowering you to supervise the CBN and scrutinize the apex bank’s accounts and those of others, our committee is requesting you to provide us with copies of the audited accounts, the approvals given to the government banker on the audited accounts, and your views on the remarks by Mr. Obazee,” Bamisile stated.The committee said the request became necessary following reports of alleged irregularities in the CBN’s financial statements and claims attributed to Obazee that the National Assembly and the Presidency were misled by the documents.Bamisile said the concerns were particularly significant given the CBN’s responsibilities as the government’s banker, regulator of the banking industry and a key institution in the formulation of Nigeria’s macroeconomic policies.“The news report, credited to the speech by Mr. Obazee and distributed at your event, revealed several alleged irregularities in the CBN’s audited financials. These touch on the integrity of the document, the bank, and its board, and cast doubt on whether these audited accounts can be relied upon for policy decisions,” he wrote.The committee also wrote to Obazee, requesting the full eight-page analysis or speech in which he detailed his concerns about the CBN’s 2025 summary consolidated and separate financial statements.“In your reported address, you raised key observations and highlighted a series of alleged irregularities in the CBN’s 2025 audited financials, leading you to conclude that the Governor of the bank deceived both the National Assembly and the Presidency,” Bamisile wrote.He added: “In view of the gravity of these concerns, we respectfully request the full 8-page analysis and/or speech delivered at the event. Please be advised that you will also be invited to appear before the Committee to defend your analysis and explain your findings regarding the alleged irregularities.”The committee said it was also concerned that there had been no public response or rebuttal from the CBN, FRC or the audit firms addressing the allegations raised by Obazee.Addressing the CBN, Bamisile stressed the importance of the integrity of its audited financial statements to economic decision-making.“As the institution that regulates the banking industry and formulates macroeconomic policies, the audited financial statements are key documents relied upon by the federal government for policy and investment decisions, and by foreign investors as a mirror of the Nigerian economy.“We have not seen any public response or rebuttal from the CBN management regarding the issues raised in Mr. Obazee’s analysis since the article was published on September 2. This silence highlights the need for a comprehensive review of the aforementioned documents.”The lawmakers also raised concerns about the implications of the allegations for the audit firms.In letters to KPMG and EY, Bamisile said the concerns raised about the accounts audited by the firms touched not only on the integrity of the financial statements but also on the CBN, its board and the audit profession.“Given the CBN’s pivotal role in the economy, such comments on documents that mirror the operations of the apex bank, and which the federal government may use in policy decisions, cannot be ignored,” he wrote.The committee chairman said the audit firms’ relationship with the CBN made their responses important to the lawmakers’ review.“In view of your relationship with the CBN as the audit firm that audited and signed off on the accounts, our committee requests you to provide us with copies of the full consolidated and separate financial statements for 2024 and 2025,” he stated.