Trial Of Ex-Skye Bank Boss Ayeni To Begin July 6
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has re-arraigned a former Chairman of the Board of Directors of the defunct Skye Bank Plc, now Polaris Bank Limited, Tunde Ayeni, before the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Apo, Abuja, over an alleged N15.6 billion fraud.
A statement by the EFCC’s spokesman, Dele Oyewale, said Ayeni was re-arraigned on Monday, June 22, 2026, before Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie on an amended 18-count charge bordering on alleged criminal breach of trust, misappropriation, and diversion of funds amounting to N15,665,085,429. He had earlier been arraigned on May 4, 2026, on a 17-count charge, but the EFCC widened the count after filing additional proof of evidence.
At Monday’s proceedings, prosecution counsel Abba Muhammed (SAN) informed the court that the commission filed an amended charge and additional proof of evidence on June 22, 2026. Defence counsel Abdul Mohammed (SAN) confirmed that he had been duly served. Ayeni pleaded not guilty to all 18 counts, and Justice Onwuegbuzie adjourned the matter until July 6, 2026, for commencement of trial.
According to the charge, Ayeni, while serving as chairman, allegedly misappropriated N510 million from depositors’ funds in the bank’s suspense account on or about September 18, 2014, by transferring the money to Capital Field Investment Group Limited’s account domiciled with Skye Bank. Another count alleged that on September 23, 2014, he diverted N600 million from the same suspense account to Harigold Ventures Limited’s account with Sterling Bank. The commission said the transfers violated the bank’s Operational Policy Manual and constituted offences contrary to Section 311 of the Penal Code, punishable under Section 312.
The case revisits one of the most consequential banking collapses of the past decade. The Central Bank of Nigeria first intervened in Skye Bank on July 4, 2016, forcing the resignation of the chairman, all non-executive directors, the managing director, deputy managing director, and the two longest-serving executive directors, after the lender failed to meet minimum prudential and capital adequacy thresholds and remained dependent on the CBN lending window. On September 21, 2018, then CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele revoked Skye Bank’s licence and established Polaris Bank as a bridge bank, with AMCON injecting N786 billion to stabilise operations and protect depositors.
The financial scale of the failure was severe. According to commentary published by Daily Trust, the bank carried a negative net asset position estimated at about N1 trillion at the point of takeover. Polaris Bank was eventually sold in October 2022, when the CBN and AMCON announced the transfer of 100 per cent equity to Strategic Capital Investment Limited for an upfront consideration of N50 billion.
The prosecution of Ayeni is not new. It was reported that the EFCC first initiated action in 2019 against Ayeni and former Managing Director Timothy Oguntayo over alleged mismanagement, with as much as N25.3 billion said to have been taken out of the bank. The fresh charges represent a renewed push to close a long-running chapter.