Nigeria is demanding nothing short of full disclosure from Binance, insisting on obtaining intricate details concerning its top 100 users within the country and delving into every transaction made over the past half-year, according to a report by the Financial Times released on Tuesday. This demand echoes amidst the ongoing, protracted detention of Binance’s compliance head and Africa region manager by Nigerian authorities, now extending into its third consecutive week.
Tigran Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla, prominent figures within Binance, have been forcibly sequestered within a government-administered “guesthouse” by Nigeria’s National Security Agency since their arrival in Abuja on February 25, purportedly under the auspices of an invitation from the Nigerian government. While the news of their detention initially surfaced on February 29 without divulging their identities, their titles and names were unmasked on Tuesday, shedding light on the escalating tension.
The contentious impasse between Nigeria’s government and Binance centers on an eye-watering sum of approximately $26 billion in untraceable funds. Nigeria perceives Binance as a formidable adversary, a direct threat to governmental efforts aimed at stabilizing the nation’s currency, the naira. Furthermore, Nigeria insists that Binance rectify any outstanding tax liabilities, prompting Binance to halt trading in naira on its platform altogether.
Despite the absence of any formal charges against them, both Gambaryan and Anjarwalla find themselves ensnared in a web of bureaucratic entanglement, essentially held hostage, as per the FT report, citing sources privy to the matter. Yet, there are assurances that they are being treated with a modicum of decency.
In the wake of these developments, a spokesperson from Binance has asserted that the company is engaged in earnest collaboration with Nigerian authorities, tirelessly striving to facilitate the safe return of Nadeem and Tigran to their awaiting families.
A looming specter of legal proceedings looms over the situation, with a court order sanctioning the detention of the Binance executives for a fortnight, culminating on Tuesday, and an impending hearing scheduled for Wednesday, to decide on the prospect of an extension.
