Money laundering has become a thoughtful problematic challenge troubling the economic, political, and also the social causes of Nigeria.  In fact, this is even further precise when it is stimulated by the context of corruption, which is considered as a predominant syndrome in the country. The Nigerian government has created a number of efforts in combating this devastating hostile. The money laundering impact in exasperating banking institutions, and also within corrupting the fiscal along with the socio-political scheme must not be taken for granted.

           Nigeria has been facing many difficulties with a lot of weaknesses impeding its democratic development. The economic, as well as political concerns of criminal institutions as well as money laundering, worsen its social values, moral principles and the autonomous groundwork of the persons as well. These illegal activities concerns are destined to decline the easy movement to an autonomous scheme. Furthermost crucially, money laundering is tangled to the main illegal activity that strains it. Laundering provides a space designed for the illegal movement to display in that way shaking Nigeria’s public appearance commencing constructive switch to destructive. 

            However, throughout the government’s acquiescence also advancement in a number of anti-money laundering rule in dynamism, a view at the falling actions in the nationwide environment concentrates the apparent hard work of the Nigerian government, in order to fight the money laundering. This paper purposes of exposing the background of money laundering in Nigeria, the development of money laundering policies in Nigeria, the impact of Nigerian money laundering regime on the banking institutions along with the effectiveness of regime in fighting the money laundering in the country.

        Introduction of Nigerian Anti Money Laundering Regime and Its Impact on the Banking Institutions and Its Effectiveness in Combating Money Laundering        
The Concept and Nature of Money Laundering of Nigerian Anti Money Laundering Regime
Litrature Review of Nigerian Anti Money Laundering Regime and Its Impact on the Banking Institutions and Its Effectiveness in Combating Money Laundering
The Problem Statement of Nigerian Anti Money Laundering Regime
The Impacts of Nigerian Money Laundering Regime on the Banking Institutions
Expansion of Anti Money Laundering Laws in Nigeria

• The exchange or handover of assets or property resulting straight from illegitimate and illegal business activity;

• Producing otherwise receiving cash payments of quantities more than the legal necessities;

• Partnership in obscuring or concealing the sincere nature, source, effort or possession of the assets, property or privileges derivative commencing the acts above;

• Recollecting the profits of illegal action; and also

• Contriving to obligate or the assisting and supporting of any crime underneath the Money Laundering Act.

The Effectiveness of Money Laundering Regime in Nigeria

            Money laundering is considered as the cover-up of the asset, nature, presence, position as well as the disposition of money and/or material goods which attained illegitimately or commencing any illegal activities like fraud, drug transferring, prostitution, corruption and further big size of the crime. It defines as a route in which the “dirty” money produced by illegal activities is transformed over and done with the authentic business into numbers of assets that unable to be simply hunted back to their illegitimate roots. In current eras, money laundering had increase extraordinary gratitude and considered as one of the global trends.

         Research by Ogbodo and Mieseigha (2013) purposes that, money laundering is supposed to be a thing it is due to it presents how  along with  money are placed from side to side of a transactions cycle and washed so that it would give a result as fresh or legal money. In simple words, it defines that the resource of this type of reserve; which is unlawful money, hidden throughout a sequence of transfers and transactions which make those similar funds is able to ultimately be generated to look as decent money (Ogbodo & Mieseigha, 2013). The word “money laundering” was mentions to by way of a practice in which money is attained illegitimately either throughout stealing, drug dealing etc., and it is washed, and the result will give the impression that the money comes commencing a valid resource. The foundation of this money laundering is unable to be determined by any person. On the other hand, there are quite a lot of thoughts mentioned that it began in the previous thousand years by the Chinese traders (Chatain, Herndez-Coss, Borowik, & Zerzan, 2008).

            Another research also suggested that, the expansion of money laundering was intended for line of work and that Nigeria is considered as a state which has become the focus of money laundering in the Africa region. Nigeria’s ancient record of corruption drives far back when the persons were utilized as slaves to serve the British colony, and as an autonomous. Nigeria is also known as a self-governing country which experiencing the evolution as of a military autocracy to a autonomous structure of its government subsequently more than  years of the military statute. At this moment, along with the democratic structure of administration in the country, money laundering is remained to be increased. With this amount of images in Nigeria fiscal division, the law administration made a decision to establish a governmental act named with The Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2004.  This act was trailed by dint of The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Anti-money laundering agreement manual procedures commencing the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC, 2003), and Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC, 2000). The entire agencies were transformed with the obligation of combating against the money laundering and putting into practice of the entire rules which deal with the monetary and financial movements in Nigeria (Idowu & Obasan, 2012).

            According to Bartram Onyebuchi Agu, Ugwuomu Nike Enugu, and O. Onwuka (2016), the impact of money laundering taking place on economic development are problematic to be counted. On the other hand, it is clear that this kind of activity is able to; make damage on the economic sector institution which are vital toward the economic development, decreases the productivity within economy’s actual segment by distracting the assets, and also inspiring the criminal movements as well as corruption, which indeed, not only slow the economic development, but also falsify the external economic segment. The case of money laundering in Nigeria had degenerated in current times, casing the appearance of innocent and diligent persons which still exist in the country. Moreover, those money launderers pass through the bank in numbers of countries along with their self-assurance that the rules and regulations in that country would shelter them along with their illegal cash to the drawback of those persons in scarcity by money launderers in which they are exasperating the authentic business in Nigeria (Agu, Enugu, & Onwuka, 2016).

                Sunday Alewo Omale (2016) purposed in his journal that, by tradition, the informal economy structure was pronounced to entail the survivalist business activities. Intrinsically, diverse negative characteristics were applied to represent the form of the informal economy, which varying as of implicit labor, tax dodging, free economic along with financial projects, illegitimate and criminal actions. Conversely, significant  actions provide legally formed products and services. Conversely, activities are not essentially passed out with a sensible reason to avoid tax payments as well as interfere with legislatures and rules. Yet, the business activities can be composed of restricted illegitimate and legal processes or lawful and asymmetrical operators. Nonetheless, there are no criminal operatives. For example, in the West African district, the  is practically in cash and product-focused.

            For this reason, the form of cash payment is considered to be the most standard system of buying products, and also most frequently services as well. Based on the report from the World Bank, across Africa, there are mentioned more than  of families do not use the form of banking. In addition to this, in Nigeria, the Central Bank of the state confirmed that only an appraised  of the people there have their bank accounts. This, debatably, is accredited to a number of factors mentioned as the religion and cultural blockades which have created a deficiency of belief stuck between the banks and their native clients (Omale, 2016).

            What's more, Omale also said that the real activity in the country that are standards in the  segment reverse the plain principles intended for banks on limpidity of economic activities as well as the accounting practices. As a result, customary prospective clients tend not to use fixed bank services. Slightly, some clients switch to a regionalized economic structure as another alternative. Through this financial structure, the shareholders within the informal segment activate savings and profit commencing minor assets that tolerate them to produce prosperity in their local financial prudence. With the expansion of this monetary linkage, an extensive quantity of money gain access into the worldwide financial structure, and in that way, divulging the informal segment along with its projects to money laundering adventures (Omale, 2016).

            Egobueze, Anthony, and Callistus U. Ojirika (2018) suggested that the victory of money laundering achievements has extremely reached out its influence on the entire economic structures of several emerging states across the world. Laundered money in due course streams into the global economic structure in addition to the sequence of this route; the states that participate in the worldwide economic structures are unprotected to the occurrence of money laundering. Explaining on this statistic, the former chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission or EFCC Nigeria, Nuhu Ridadu, declared that, the quantity tangled within a number of practices within worldwide economic and fiscal criminalities exclusively corruption, are every so often so huge that it is even able to impact both the veracity of domestic financial prudence as well as the worldwide economic systems. As an instance, an appraised number of  was immorally transferred commencing Nigeria in the middle of 1980s and 1999 (Egobueze & Ojirika, 2018).

            According to Mungar Divya Luxmi Devi (2017), the challenge that Nigeria has to face is further in developing countries in which aimed at lack of accommodations money laundering is unable to be easily identified by the law enforcement organizations, and thus they rest on the collaboration of the banks. The knowledge of the application along with the genuineness of government and the readiness of the concern performers within the industry to adopt the economic growth in whole, direct to the construction of a number of rule and policies which intended at affecting in contradiction of such wicked criminal activities without endangering the main importance of numerous shareholders within the system. Therefore, the formation of the EFCC is to lead the combat against money laundering and further associated criminal activities in Nigeria. In the similar manner, Nigerian Banks need to trail the worldwide arrangement by detect and report any business dealings of a disbelieving background to the economic intellect division in the particular state along with educate their employees in anti-money laundering, and educate to report the criminal actions which they considered to be disbelieving (Devi, 2017).

             Akin Olawale Oluwadayisi and Moruf Oluwakayode Mimiko (2016) proposed that, the rules that prevailing money laundering in Nigeria are mentioned such as; the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, the Money Laundering (Prohibition) (Amendment) Act (together, the Money Laundering Act), the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission Act as well as the Central Bank of Nigeria (Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism in Banks and Other Financial Institutions in Nigeria) Regulations. The core features of these laws forbid some things, as mentioned below (Oluwadayisi & Mimiko, 2016):

            Peter Reuter (2017) described that, in the worldwide point, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development or also known as OECD countries assisted the formation of Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to provoke the threat of money laundering spectacle. Ever since its formation, FATF has prospered in initiating active events in fighting the money laundering threat. In addition to this, the organization has also obstinately created concrete recommendations on how nationwide legislatures allocating with the money laundering threat should be made. Intrinsically, a number of countries, in reaction, have passed their national laws accurately created to address the money laundering criminality within their authorities (Reuter, 2017).

                Mohammed O. Amali (2016) mentioned in his journal that, the initial substantial governmental extent in Nigeria was engaged in the year of 1989, with the establishment of , which transported Nigeria into the same line with the . On the other hand, in the year of 1995, at the same time as under the military regulation, Nigeria passed the . At that moment, the purposes of the Money Laundering Decree were; to create convinced which is a textual track is left in the entire money laundering transactions, over and done with banks, and also to create nearer linkage amongst banks and the  through the purpose of avoiding and tracking those money launderers. Until this scope, the verdict, restricted the number of money dealings, in Nigeria, up to  in the circumstance of a person and  in the context of a business form (Amali, 2016).

            Conversely, Selina Keesoony (2016) proposed in her journal that no matter the decree was planned to solve the money laundering threat performs, there were obvious excuses that influenced in contradiction of its effective application. In the case of Nigeria, this is considered as not unpredicted, due to the characteristic form of the legislature in the country barely takes the opinion of the entire circumstances formerly before a decree is passed in the country. This issue was further ostensible throughout the military regulation where verdicts were passing out afterwards the meetings of the military-controlled governing the congresses deprived of the governmental discussion. The vanity of the verdict in fighting money laundering as well as a supposed idea of the state’s party-political management’s reluctance or incapability to deal with the threat directed to Nigeria presence located on the note of National Center for Competency Testing or NCCT in . In reply, the following democratic regime significantly developed a readiness to address  absences within the state, and also collaborate more with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). As a consequence, in 2002, December 14, Nigeria passed the . In principle, the verdict developed the range of the  with increasing base violations intended aimed at money laundering commencing drugs toward some type of criminality or illegitimate activity. The verdict is likewise extended specific responsibilities to non-bank economic organizations and stretched the customer documentation requests to take in persistent business dealings of  or further (Keesoony, 2016).

            Moreover, according to Otu Offiong Duke, and Dickson David Agbaji (2017), Nigeria passed over the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) (Establishment) Act on December 2002. The EFCC was appointed in April 2003 and was responsible for exploring the money laundering cases as of some establish crimes further than drug trafficking and as well as carry out the money laundering regulation of 1995 (as adjusted in the year of 2002). The EFCC could be described as a Nigerian law prosecution organization that explores economic crime activities such as fee fraud as well as money laundering (Duke & Agbaji, 2017).

                Petrus C. van Duyne, Jackie H. Harvey, and Liliya Y. Gelemerova (2018) described that the EFCC was recognized in the year 2003, to some extent in reply to the burden commencing the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering (FATF), which entitled Nigeria on the list of 23  states in the global society’s exertions to combat money laundering. Up till now, the Commission has achieved also still creating some successes in a number of parts of its obligation. Amid others, it has documented numerous verdicts on money laundering, corruption, oil pipeline damage and associated crimes. Resources and money value more than  have been recuperated commencing corrupt officers along with their associates. The Commission is persistent with more than  cases at progressive stages of action in numerous court of law in Nigeria and above  further cases in court, plus, it has also protected above  verdicts. The Commission effectively take legal action for one of the world’s largest fraud cases comprising around  ascending commencing a bank scam located in Brazil. It has enlarged the profits shape of the country because of its partnership with the Federal Inland Revenue Service and the Seaports and has recuperated profits exceeding , (in excess of ) aimed at government (Duyne, Harvey, & Gelemerova, 2019).

                    Ethelbert Okey Lawrence (2016) mentioned in his journal that, there is no doubt that the enactment of  in Nigeria presents the hard work of government in fighting the money laundering cases that exist in the country. On the other hand, these huge steps might be considered to be less effective if the obstacle of law implementation is not handled with. One thing to be noted that, the Act creates several supplies refers to the revelation of evidence on economic dealings conducted by economic organizations along with the drawbacks succeeding any break. Conversely, it is quite unsure to which scope are the different guiding organizations could drive to implement these supplies, plus,   Nigerians have the habit of decline regulations and rested on the laws.    Even in the case when they fail to fulfil, the supervisory institutions have been acknowledged to act like they do not notice that to the non-compliance.  This carries to power the nation of corruption bedeviling the country.  In this condition, there is weird teamwork among the officers of non-obeying banks as well as the supervisory organizations (Lawrence, 2016).

                Ahmed Isah Yanga, Garba Ibrahim, and Iliya Bawa (2019) purposed in their journal that, another essential Nigerian organization in the combat against money laundering mentioned as the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC), which recognized in the year of 2000. Its core responsibilities are to inspect the reports of some corrupt performs, to eliminate the corruption in the public organizations, and also to educate the public in combating the corruption. The Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) also notes between its responsibilities around the avoidance of corruption over and done with revisions of systems, performs and process. At the same time as the EFCC is an examination and tribunal organization which focused on the economic crime activities, the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) has a bigger obligation to grab corruption in every single form both by examination and education. The amendments created to the legislature in the year of 2002 provided a better obligation to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in handling the case of money laundering in the country. In specific, they permit the governor bigger authority to interfere in the banking segment with a purpose to defense assurance in the economic system completely. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has also been specified a bigger function in economic sector investigation, recognizing trends and corruption forms in banks and further financial institutions. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has engaged the entire commercial banks which located in Nigeria to make a report of any transaction of an amount in excess of half a million naira or . Then, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will hand over all those reports to the National Economic Intelligence Committee (NEIC) (Yanga, Ibrahim, & Bawa, 2019).