Richard Teng, CEO of the cryptocurrency exchange Binance, stated in a post on Tuesday (7th) that the Nigerian government has unlawfully detained Binance employee Tigran Gambaryan for over 70 days and has received demands for payment of a large amount of cryptocurrency. However, according to informed sources, it is suspected that Nigerian officials have taken a $150 million cryptocurrency bribe from Binance to resolve the dispute with the country.
Two Binance executives have been accused of money laundering and tax evasion. According to previous reports, the Nigerian government banned exchanges such as Binance and Coinbase in February and accused Binance of “currency manipulation,” causing a 70% devaluation of the country’s currency, the Naira. In addition, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) of Nigeria has charged two Binance executives who went to the country for negotiations with money laundering and tax evasion and has detained them.
On the other hand, one of the detained Binance executives, Nadeem Anjarwalla, the regional manager for Binance Africa, escaped from Nigeria on March 22nd, while Tigran Gambaryan will stand trial on May 17th.
However, Richard Teng stated that Binance had initially emphasized to the Nigerian government that Tigran Gambaryan is not a decision-maker or negotiator for the company, but rather a specialist in financial crimes and policy discussions. Therefore, Richard Teng is very puzzled by Nigeria’s accusations and the detention of Tigran Gambaryan.
A bribe of up to $150 million demanded
According to The New York Times, Tigran Gambaryan, a former US law enforcement officer and the current head of Binance’s Financial Crimes Compliance Department, received a message when he traveled to Nigeria in January, demanding that Binance pay $150 million in cryptocurrency within 48 hours to resolve the accusations. Tigran Gambaryan interpreted this message as a bribe request from a Nigerian official.
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