While the adoption of digital financial services has grown significantly in Ethiopia, it has also increased consumer protection risks. Recent incidents indicate a rise in scams and attempted fraud conducted through hacked or impersonated messaging and social media accounts. For instance, Fraudsters are increasingly using platforms such as WhatsApp, Telegram, Facebook, email, SMS and unsolicited or fake phone calls to impersonate individuals and request urgent financial transfers from unsuspecting customers. These schemes pose a growing risk to consumers and may undermine public confidence in digital financial services.

As you are aware, the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) is mandated to regulate financial education under Article 6(28) of the National Bank of Ethiopia Proclamation No. 1359/2025. In addition, financial institutions are required to inform customers about fraud risks and their responsibilities in safeguarding financial instruments, as stipulated under Articles 5.1.7 and 5.2.8 of Financial Consumer Protection Directive No. FCP/01/2020.

Accordingly, the National Bank of Ethiopia hereby launched Fraud Awareness Campaign and instructs banks and payment instrument issuers to implement the following measures: