FNB probes E10m loan fraud involving suspected insiders

MBABANE – FNB Eswatini is investigating suspected fraud involving loans worth more than E10 million.

The alleged scheme is understood to have involved some customers working with suspected insiders to obtain bank financing using purportedly fraudulent documents.

FNB Eswatini Chief Executive Officer Thokozani Dlamini confirmed that the bank had reported a case of suspected internal fraud to the Royal Eswatini Police Service (REPS). Dlamini said investigations were still ongoing and no employee had been found guilty of any crime at this stage.

The Times of Eswatini understands that the alleged scheme involved customers who would first register companies before purportedly obtaining fraudulent agreements showing that they had been awarded, for example, tenders to transport logs for forestry companies. The documents would allegedly then be presented to the bank as part of applications for financing to purchase trucks.

Information gathered by this publication indicates that after the financing was approved and the trucks acquired, some of the vehicles were allegedly sold, while the customers continued to benefit from the loan arrangements. Sources informed this publication that the employees and the purported freight entrepreneurs abused the facility for personal enrichment.

“They were making money from selling the trucks which they had literally not spent a cent on as they were availed through a credit facility,” a source said.

It has been gathered that the alleged involvement of bank insiders is among the issues being investigated. It could not be immediately established how many customers, employees or trucks are involved in the matter, as investigations are still ongoing.

Dlamini said the suspected fraud had been detected through the bank’s established controls and fraud risk-management systems.

He said the bank was working closely with REPS in investigating the matter.

“It is crucial to emphasise that investigations are still underway, and no employee has been found guilty of any crime at this stage,” Dlamini said. The CEO assured customers, stakeholders and the public that customer assets remained secure.

He said the bank continued to maintain controls designed to detect suspicious activity and protect customers. “This matter is the subject of ongoing investigations, including engagement with law-enforcement authorities, thus FNB Eswatini will not be providing further comments,” Dlamini said. The alleged truck-financing scheme bears similarities to a case previously reported by this publication involving Eswatini Development Finance Corporation (FINCORP). In July 2025, this publication reported that FINCORP had uncovered a truck-loan fraud scheme involving businesspeople who allegedly obtained substantial loans to purchase trucks purportedly for businesses in Eswatini.

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