The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Friday concluded its testimony against the Binance cryptocurrency platform, maintaining that it carried out “hidden operations” in Nigeria without authorization.
Dr. Olubukola Akinwunmi, Director, Banking Supervision at the CBN, concluded his testimony before Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Abuja, on Friday
The criminal trial was commenced by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in 2024.
Nairametrics reports that the EFCC accused Binance and its past executives, Tigran Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla, of allegedly conspiring among themselves to conceal the origin of the financial proceeds of their alleged unlawful activities in Nigeria, including $35,400,000.
Nigerian authorities allege that they committed an offence contrary to Section 21(a) and punishable under Section 18(3) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
Binance denies the allegations.
What they are saying
At the resumed cross-examination led by Binance’s lawyer, Tonye Krukrubo (SAN), Akinwunmi said he was aware that Binance, at the time of his review, was available, marketed to Nigerians, and accessible in Nigeria.
- Asked whether there was a specific law prohibiting cryptocurrency trading in Nigeria at the time of his review, he responded: “I am aware that cryptocurrency trading and its usage were restricted at some point in Nigeria.”
He was then asked to confirm whether cryptocurrency is a relatively new area of development in the digital space.
- “I am aware that development in cryptocurrency has been around for upwards of ten years,” Akinwunmi responded.
- “From the documents and exhibits you have tendered, would I be correct to say that there is no evidence that Binance was actively seeking to hide the fact that it offers cryptocurrency trading services in Nigeria?” the senior lawyer asked.
The CBN official maintained that, based on his knowledge of Binance’s activities and those of its users, “their usage of the Nigerian banking system was hidden by the use of pseudonyms by users of the platform.”
He also declined to speak on whether Binance deliberately intended to hide its activities.
- “There were times when there was free access to its platform, and there were also times when it was not accessible except through covert channels,” he said.
The CBN official added that he might be unable to specify whether any order exists at the time, issued by the Minister of Finance and published in the official gazette of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, designating cryptocurrency as foreign exchange.
After his evidence, the court discharged Akinwunmi from the witness box and fixed May 15 for the continuation of the trial.
Backstory
In early 2024, Nigeria’s National Security Adviser (NSA) classified cryptocurrency trading as a national security issue.
Following this, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) directed four fintech startups operating in the country—OPay, Moniepoint, Paga, and PalmPay to block the accounts of customers engaging in cryptocurrency transactions and report such activities to law enforcement agencies.
Earlier in February 2024, Binance disabled its peer-to-peer feature for Nigerian users after coming under scrutiny from the Nigerian government over allegations of currency manipulation and money laundering.
Meanwhile, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), during a virtual meeting with the Blockchain Industry Coordinating Committee of Nigeria, called for new cryptocurrency measures aimed at removing the naira as a currency pair from peer-to-peer platforms.
On February 28, 2024, Nigerian authorities detained two senior Binance executives: Nadeem Anjarwalla, a 37-year-old British-Kenyan and regional manager for Africa, and Tigran Gambaryan, a 39-year-old American and head of financial crime compliance at Binance.
Anjarwalla fled the country while Gambaryan was released on health grounds after weeks of diplomatic engagements between the United States and Nigeria.
What you should know
Amid the trial, a director from the SEC told the court that the Binance platform had become a reference point for determining Nigeria’s exchange rate at the time.
- The SEC is a Federal Government agency responsible for registering all capital market stakeholders, instruments traded on the market, and trading platforms.
- Nairametrics reports that a popular method of buying and selling crypto is through peer-to-peer (P2P) trading, where buyers and sellers are directly connected in a marketplace-like arrangement.
- Binance is also facing separate suits by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) over alleged tax evasion.
- However, in March this year, Binance’s legal team told Justice Nwite that it is seeking an amicable resolution with the FIRS through an out-of-court settlement.
A report on the settlement has been fixed for May 12, 2026.
