Malawi’s State Oil Company Wired US$403,605 to a Stranger
A forged email changed the bank details on a fuel-handling invoice. NOCMA paid, and only found out weeks later when the real supplier called. The post Malawi’s State Oil Company Wired US$403,605 to a Stranger appeared first on The Rio Times .
Malawi's state oil company, NOCMA, has admitted to transferring US$403,605 to an account controlled by fraudsters due to forged emails. These emails impersonated a fuel supplier, Mozhandling Limited, and altered the supplier's bank details at a major US bank. The incident only came to light after the legitimate supplier inquired about the missing payment, two weeks after the transfer was initiated on 29 April 2026.
The money was wired to an account held by a company with a name strikingly similar to the genuine supplier, at the National Bank of Malawi. Police have since arrested the company's deputy chief executive and senior operations manager, though recovery of the stolen funds has not yet been reported. Security experts warn that business email compromise (BEC) attacks are becoming increasingly common, exploiting email correspondence between organizations to defraud companies of funds.
The case highlights the importance of verifying bank details through secure channels, even when dealing with trusted suppliers.
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