First Bank Security Concerns: Unauthorized N800,000 Withdrawal Raises Alarm

 First Bank Security Concerns: Unauthorized N800,000 Withdrawal Raises Alarm

... Customer Expresses Distress

Historically, First Bank Nigeria has been a standout in the banking industry, particularly among the older Generational banks in Nigeria, in terms of transactional efficiency and customer relations

A disturbing trend has emerged at the Bank, where customers' accounts are being debited without authorization, leading to growing unease and suspicion about potential insider involvement, possibly connected to the change in leadership or other internal dynamics

A recent occurrence involving Mary Charles Ola a regular First Bank customer, has raised concerns within the community and beyond, prompting her to seek urgent intervention from relevant authorities regarding an unauthorized N800,000 debit alert on her Account, which purportedly compromises her account's privacy

The young lady, Mary Charles Ola with first bank Account Number 3070273453 who complain bitterly to this medium, stated that receiving an unauthorized debit alert from her First Bank account without conducting any transactions was rude, shocking, and disheartening.This dynamic and resourceful young woman, who operates a bulk supplier of building sand, described how the entire transaction controversy unfolded rapidly.

On Friday at approximately 5:30 pm, I was at  the First Bank ATM point at the Opebi Allen branch with the intention of executing a transaction to pay for numerous tipper tons of sand that a customer had requested. Regrettably, upon inserting my First Bank card into first Bank ATM, the machine unexpectedly retained it, and I promptly received a series of rapid debit alerts. The first alert indicated a deduction of N500,000, followed by a second alert for N200,000, and subsequently, a third alert for N100,000, leaving me astonished and perturbed by the unauthorized transactions

Given that the incident occurred late on Friday, July 18th 2025 after the bank's business hours, and at a First Bank ATM, my immediate recourse was to notify the bank's security detail. The security personnel, appearing uncertain, advised me to reach out to my account officer directly if possible. Following this guidance, I contacted my account officer without delay, who in turn stated that the bank was not aware of the incident details

During my phone conversation with the account officer while standing near the First Bank ATM at Opebi, onlookers who witnessed my plight confirmed that a similar incident had happened to another First Bank customer a few days ago at the same branch

Mary's efforts to retrieve her ATM card and further to escalate her complaint at the First Bank Opebi Allen branch, the nearest branch, were met with resistance from the branch manager, who insisted on awaiting direct clearance from the First Bank Marina Head Office before investigating the matter, without regard for the potential consequences on her business or the inconvenience

If this is the reality faced by ordinary Nigerians struggling to survive with meager income-generating businesses, what would be the fate of the most vulnerable Nigerians?

At the time of compiling this report, this medium made additional efforts to contact the First Bank corporate communications department through phone calls and messages to determine if they could assist the young lady, but unfortunately, all attempts were unsuccessful due to a lack of response.

Await part 2 of the First Bank debit alert expose on reckless and dubious activities.