The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Monday told the House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee investigating the controversial Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) that it opened two foreign currency accounts for the council on the directive of the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF).

The apex bank insisted that it was not required to request an enabling Act before processing the application.

The CBN, however, disclosed that the two domiciliary accounts, one denominated in United States dollars and the other in British pounds sterling—L were never funded or operated.

Director of Banking Services Department, Hamisu Ibrahim, who represented the CBN Governor before the committee chaired by Yusuf Gagdi, said the bank received a formal mandate dated July 29, 2025, from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation directing it to open the accounts for the Presidential Economic Advisory Council/Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council.

According to him, the bank carried out its standard account-opening procedures after receiving the mandate before opening the accounts.

“We received a mandate from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation dated July 29, 2025, to open two domiciliary accounts, one in dollars and the other in pounds, for the Presidential Economic Advisory Council/Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council,” Ibrahim said.

Responding to questions from lawmakers on whether the apex bank requested an enabling law establishing the council before opening the accounts, Ibrahim said such a requirement did not arise in the circumstances.

“We don’t ask for an enabling Act. We received a mandate from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation to open the accounts for the council,” he stated.

He told the committee that although the accounts were successfully opened, they remained inactive from inception.

“The accounts have never been operated. There has never been any inflow or outflow of funds. No foreign exchange allocation was made to the council and no transaction was carried out on the accounts,” he said.

According to him, both accounts were opened with zero balances and remained so throughout.

“The accounts can take a zero balance from inception, but they have never recorded any inflow. The statements of account submitted to the committee clearly show there were no transactions,” Ibrahim added.

He informed lawmakers that the CBN had no direct correspondence with the controversial council beyond acting on the mandate forwarded by the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.

The controversy started when the Presidency, through the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, disowned the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) and the Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC), declaring that neither body was established by the Federal Government or authorised by President Bola Tinubu.

The Presidency identified Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew, who had been presenting himself as the Director-General of the council, as the principal promoter of the scheme and alleged that he used forged government documents, including a purported appointment letter bearing the forged signature of the Chief of Staff, to secure official recognition for the organisation.

The scandal widened after investigations revealed that the council allegedly used the documents to engage several government institutions, including the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation.

The body was also found to have secured office space within the Federal Secretariat, sought staff recruitment and deployment, and was allocated about N1.3 billion in the 2026 Appropriation Act despite having no legal basis.

Following the revelations, President Tinubu directed the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to investigate the matter, while the Federal Government arraigned Adeyemi and two others before the Federal High Court in Abuja on charges bordering on forgery, impersonation and obtaining by false pretence.

The House of Representatives subsequently constituted the Yusuf Gagdi-led ad hoc committee to unravel how the controversial council gained recognition across government institutions and found its way into the 2026 budget.