The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission is still awaiting responses from foreign countries over funds linked to the collapsed CBEX investment scheme, Sunday PUNCH has learnt.

An official of the commission familiar with the investigation told our correspondent on Saturday that a significant portion of the money remained outside Nigeria.

CBEX, a platform that promised 100 per cent returns within 30 days through online trading, crashed in early April 2025 after no fewer than 600,000 Nigerians reportedly invested about N1.3tn in the scheme.

The platform restricted withdrawals on April 9, 2025, leaving users unable to access their funds.

Account balances of investors were subsequently wiped out, while the platform allegedly demanded a fresh deposit of at least $100 before users could regain access, further fueling suspicions of fraud.

Among the top Nigerians who invested in the scheme was Fuji musician Taye Adebisi, popularly known as Taye Currency.

Providing an update on the EFCC’s investigation, the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak publicly, said the anti-graft agency had formally written to relevant foreign authorities seeking cooperation in tracing and recovering funds transferred out of Nigeria.

He said none of the foreign countries had responded to the EFCC’s letters for over a year.

“Many of the operators have been arrested and some of them arraigned. You know this thing has foreign linkage. We have written to these foreign jurisdictions concerning the funds that were moved to their jurisdictions. We are still expecting responses. This is not something we have control over,” the official said.

Another EFCC official, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said the investigation involved immigration, legal, and law enforcement processes across countries, which could take time before meaningful responses are received.

“Many issues are involved. Immigration issues are involved, legal and a lot of law enforcement issues are involved. They paid dollars; it would involve other jurisdictions, but we are sorting them out and our investigation has not stopped,” he said.

The official further disclosed that although some funds had been recovered locally from suspects already arrested, a larger percentage of the money traced in the scheme had been moved outside Nigeria.

“Some within the country have been recovered from those arrested, as stated by our chairman, but a larger percent of the money is not in the country,” he added.

The EFCC’s spokesman, Dele Oyewale, could not be reached for comments.

The commission had earlier declared 14 persons wanted in connection with the fraudulent investment platform, while several suspects have already been apprehended and are currently facing trial.

Investigators believe the syndicate operated through a network of local promoters and foreign collaborators, making recovery efforts dependent on cooperation from international partners. (Sunday PUNCH)

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