Kesis Belay Mekonnen, a clergy member of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, has been implicated in a fraudulent plot. This occurrence took place subsequent to the Ethiopian Commercial Bank’s declaration of a technical problem in March, leading to a significant number of customers becoming targets of deceitful withdrawals amounting to millions of dollars. On Tuesday, 30th April, the African Union revealed that an attempt to misappropriate more than six million dollars from accounts held at Ethiopia’s main financial institution had been effectively thwarted.
The AU reported that an outsider tried to withdraw funds from its accounts at the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) through deceptive payment orders related to construction and water drilling projects.
The AU commended the CBE staff and its finance department for their alertness and quick action, which effectively stopped the fraudulent activity. This timely intervention stopped the funds from being taken out, prevented a possible financial loss, and upheld the financial and management controls’ integrity.
On 15 April, an incident occurred at a CBE branch situated at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. The Ethiopian security authorities were promptly notified, and swift actions were undertaken to ascertain the identities and apprehend the individuals responsible, following the established investigation protocols.
The AU expressed its concern over the attempted fraud, emphasizing that it had brought to light possible weaknesses. Consequently, a thorough evaluation of the current security measures has been initiated.
The African Union is currently partnering with the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia to enhance security measures and enforce better protocols in order to deter any future fraudulent activities that may jeopardize its financial stability.
Following a technical issue reported by the CBE in March, which resulted in unauthorized withdrawals amounting to millions of dollars by numerous customers, the AU is taking proactive steps to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future. 3
The CBE’s disclosure of a theft totaling approximately $19.5 million has prompted the AU to collaborate closely with the bank to address security vulnerabilities and minimize the risk of potential financial losses, with some sources suggesting the figure could be as high as $100 million.
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