Binance accuses Nigerian officials of demanding $150m bribe, FG assures due process

BINANCE, a cryptocurrency platform, has accused certain high-ranking government officials of requesting $150 million in cryptocurrency to resolve the criminal charges against the company.

The Nigerian government recently took action against the cryptocurrency platform in an effort to bolster the naira, alleging offenses such as tax evasion, currency speculation, and money laundering totaling $35.4 million.

In a blog post published by the New York Times yesterday, Binance’s Chief Executive Officer, Richard Teng, raised the issue of bribery.

“On a trip to Nigeria in January, Tigran Gambaryan, a compliance officer for the giant cryptocurrency exchange Binance, received an unsettling message: The company had 48 hours to make a payment of roughly $150 million in crypto,” the report said.

During a trip to Nigeria in January, Tigran Gambaryan, a compliance officer at Binance, reportedly received a message demanding a payment of approximately $150 million in crypto within 48 hours.

“Mr. Gambaryan, a former U.S. law enforcement agent, understood the message as a request for a bribe from someone in the Nigerian government, according to five people familiar with the matter and messages reviewed by The New York Times. He and a group of his Binance colleagues had just met with Nigerian legislators, who accused the company of tax violations and threatened to arrest its employees.”

Gambaryan, a former U.S. law enforcement agent, interpreted this as a bribe request from a member of President Bola Tinubu’s government.

Following this incident, Gambaryan and his colleague Nadeem Anjarwalla were reportedly arrested and detained on the orders of the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu. Anjarwalla later escaped and is believed to be in Kenya. Gambaryan has since been transferred from a safe house to the Kuje Correctional Centre in Abuja since April 8, facing charges of tax evasion and money laundering alongside Binance.

In response to these allegations, the spokesperson for the Office of the National Security Adviser, Zakari Mijinyawa, affirmed that the Federal Government would adhere to due process, presenting their case based on facts and evidence.

Mijinyawa assured that both Nigeria and Binance would have the opportunity to present their cases within the bounds of the law to ensure justice is served.

He assured that the government would make its case “on the strength of the facts and evidence, in accordance with due process.”

“We are confident that Nigeria has a good case. Binance equally will have every opportunity under the rule of law to make its case and see justice delivered,” Mijinyawa said.