The United States government has imposed sanctions on a Nigerian national and three Nigeria-based financial firms for allegedly facilitating funds linked to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, ISIS.
In a statement issued by State Department spokesperson Thomas Pigott, Washington said the action targeted three individuals and six entities across Nigeria, France, Syria and Türkiye, all accused of supporting ISIS’s global financial network.
One of those designated is Mukhtar Adamu Muhammad, a Nigerian national alleged to have ties to ISIS West Africa through a network of money exchange businesses. U.S. authorities listed his address as No. 45 Abimbola Street, off Capital Road, Morcas Agege, Lagos State. He was born on 2nd August 1990 and holds passport numbers A11904741 and A07422697.
The three Nigerian companies also sanctioned are: Generation Currency Bureau de Change Limited, RC 1555604; Manhattan Bureau de Change Limited, RC 1763824, located at No. 59 Murtala Mohammed Way, Wapa, Kano and Nine to Nine Exchange Bureau de Change Limited, RC 1462752, based in Ikeja, Lagos State
U.S. officials allege, the firms were used as conduits for moving funds connected to ISIS operations.
Pigott said investigations revealed a network stretching from Europe and the Middle East to West Africa. “Today’s designations target three individuals and six entities operating across Europe, the Middle East, and West Africa who have enabled ISIS to move money across borders – exposing a network that spans from France and Syria to Türkiye and Nigeria,” he stated.
The U.S. also designated a France-based facilitator accused of providing explosives information to ISIS supporters, and a Syria-based operator alleged to have used cryptocurrency to transfer funds on behalf of ISIS associates in several countries, including the United States.
The sanctions were imposed under Executive Order 13224, as amended – a U.S. counterterrorism measure targeting persons and organisations accused of providing material support or financing to terrorist groups. The action freezes any U.S.-based assets of those designated and bars Americans from dealing with them.
Pigott stressed that Washington would keep using “every diplomatic and legal tool available to hold ISIS and its supporters accountable – wherever they operate, and however they move money.” He added that the U.S. remains committed to protecting American lives, defending religious minorities, and working with international partners to eliminate the ISIS threat.
ISIS, formerly known as al-Qa’ida in Iraq, was designated a Specially Designated Global Terrorist organisation in 2004. The latest action places Nigeria among countries identified in an alleged international ISIS financing network and marks one of the most significant recent U.S. sanctions involving Nigerian individuals and businesses.
The development comes amid renewed security concerns in Nigeria, which have heightened public anxiety