Binance is at the heart of a major scandal in Nigeria. Already the target of accusations of exchange rate manipulation, the exchange now faces a new twist: the incredible escape of one of its executives, detained by the Nigerian authorities since late February.
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Binance executive escapes from prison in Nigeria
Binance is facing serious challenges in Nigeria. In early February, the Nigerian authorities accused the platform of manipulating local currency exchange rates, leading to the arrest of two of its executives on February 26 : Nadeem Anjarwalla, Binance regional manager in Africa, and Tigran Gambaryan, head of criminal investigation team. On arrival in Nigeria, their passports were confiscated, and they were detained in a guest house in Abuja, the capital.
However, on March 22, an unexpected twist occurred. Indeed, it seems that Anjarwalla managed to escape as he was being taken to a nearby mosque to pray. The exact circumstances of his escape remain unclear, as his British passport is still in the hands of the Nigerian authorities.
As part of their investigation, the Nigerian authorities asked Binance to give them access to the Nigerian traders’ data and information. Following Binance’s refusal to comply, the court extended the executives’ detention for a further 14 days, to prevent any falsification of evidence.
According to an immigration official, Anjarwalla fled Nigeria with a Kenyan passport, and left the country on a flight to the Middle East. Nigerian authorities are now trying to understand how he managed to obtain this second passport, as he had no other travel documents while in detention.
Binance charged with tax evasion
In parallel with this evasion, the Nigerian government launched criminal proceedings against Binance for tax evasion, according to TheGuardian. The charges were filed on Monday, March 24 in the Federal High Court Abuja adding a new dimension to the legal problems of exchange in the country.
The alleged escape of a Binance executive in Nigeria only exacerbates the regulatory problems facing the crypto platform
Initially, Nigeria had sanctioned Binance by imposing a colossal fine of 10 billion for its activities in the country. However, the authorities then backtracked and chose to block the two executives who had come to Nigeria in an attempt to resolve the situation, while maintaining the blocking of the Binance site and other crypto platforms operating on Nigerian territory.
As a journalist at Coinpri, I’ve been captivated by the world of bitcoin and blockchain since 2020. The decentralized aspect of Bitcoin particularly piqued my interest. Since then, I’ve been working constantly to spread my knowledge, hoping one day to see a world where everyone fully enjoys their financial freedom.
