A geopolitical research agency called SB Morgen (SBM) Intelligence claims that between July 2024 and June 2025, kidnappers wanted more than N48 billion from victims and their families.
In its most recent analysis, “Economics of Nigeria’s Kidnap Industry,” the research firm stated that just N2.57 billion of the N48 billion requested as ransom was actually paid.
According to SBM, at least 997 events resulted in the kidnapping of at least 4722 persons, while over the same time period, at least 762 people were slain.
“Nigeria’s kidnapping crisis has evolved into a lucrative criminal enterprise, with N2.56 billion ($1.66 million) confirmed in ransom payments and 4,722 civilians abducted in just one year,” the report reads.
“The Northwest remains the most violent, while the Southeast and South-South face targeted religious abductions and financial extortion.
“Unless security forces dismantle these networks and address root causes—poverty, unemployment, and weak law enforcement—the cycle of kidnappings, ransoms, and deaths will continue unchecked, leaving ordinary Nigerians in perpetual fear.”
Table of Contents
A Snapshot of What the Report Says About the kidnappers and Ransoms
The company clarified that although ransom payments in naira have skyrocketed, the dollar equivalent has not kept up.
For instance, the report noted that N653.7 million, or roughly $1.13 million, was paid in total in the 2022 report.
The sum paid decreased to N302 million ($387,179) the next year.
“Although the NGN amount paid rose sharply to N1.05 billion in 2024, the USD equivalent was only around $655,000,” the report reads.
“The latest figures show a new high, with N2.56 billion paid, which amounts to approximately $1.66 million.
“This significant divergence between the NGN and USD amounts reflects the ongoing devaluation of the Nigerian currency.
“As the cost of living soars and legitimate livelihood opportunities dwindle, kidnapping has become a highly organised and pervasive criminal industry.”
The company saw that the criminals are requesting ever-increasing amounts in naira to make up for the declining purchase value of the currency, turning the crimes from a sign of a shoddy security system into a profitable business strategy.
ZAMFARA, KADUNA RECORDED HIGHEST NUMBER OF PEOPLE KIDNAPPED
According to the research firm’s state study, Zamfara, Kaduna, and Katsina had the most instances and victims out of the 4,722 documented abduction cases.
“In the period under review, Katsina led in the number of kidnap-related incidents with 131, accounting for 13.1% of the national total,” the report reads.
“However, this does not correspond with the total number of people kidnapped. That record belongs to Zamfara, whose 1203 kidnapped residents account for 25.4% of the total.
“Of the top five states in the number of incidents, four-fifths are northern, with Katsina (131), Kaduna (123), Zamfara (113) and Niger (40) representing two northern geopolitical zones (Northwest and Northcentral).
“In comparison, Delta completes the five states with 49 incidents.
“This means that the most kidnap-infested state in the South accounts for a little less than 5% of the whole, making the kidnap crisis a predominantly northern issue.”
SBM observed that this year’s kidnappers were more daring and demanded outrageous amounts of ransom.
The report claims that the abduction of Chidimma and Precious Enuma, together with their aunt Anwuri Oko Ye, in the Ebedei Ukwuole community of the Ukwuani local government area of Delta State on March 15, 2025, resulted in the highest amount of N48 billion requested as payment.
The kidnappers requested N30 billion as ransom; this singular incident represents 62.5 percent of all ransom demanded.
SBM stressed that the government must act with commitment and strategy to end the situation and suggested that prompt and systematic action is necessary to interrupt the cycle of abductions by kidnappers.
While economic stabilisation may result in fewer recruitment pools, the firm claims that upending financial networks with cutting-edge tracing technologies might deprive kidnappers of earnings.
“But without coordinated strategies targeting both the crime’s profitability and its socioeconomic drivers, Nigeria risks entrenching kidnapping as a grim national industry, one that perpetuates poverty, undermines recovery, and leaves citizens hostage to a failing system,” the firm warned.
Conclusion
Half-measures are no longer an option, according to SBM, and Nigeria can only start to regain its security and future by destroying the ransom industry and fully combatting insecurity in order to cub kidnappers operations.
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