Binance Executive Accused of Tax Evasion and Money Laundering in Nigerian Court

Key Points:

• Binance executives face charges in Nigeria for tax evasion and money laundering.
• Allegations involve laundering over $35 million amid Nigerian authorities’ crackdown on cryptocurrency.
• The case underscores challenges for exchanges amidst tightening regulatory controls globally.

A Binance executive, the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchange, faced charges of tax evasion and money laundering in an Abuja court on Thursday amidst a crackdown on digital currency activities in Nigeria.

Binance Executive Faces Legal Battle in Nigeria

According to Reuters, Tigran Gambaryan, the head of financial crime compliance at Binance, appears in court. Nadeem Anjarwalla, Binance’s regional manager for Africa, was absent from the trial.

The charges against Gambaryan and Anjarwalla stem from allegations of laundering over $35 million and evading taxes. This legal action follows the detention of the two executives on February 26 when they arrived in Nigeria for discussions with authorities, who had blocked access to cryptocurrency channels amid concerns about currency speculation.

Anjarwalla managed to escape from custody and fled the country, leaving Gambaryan to face the charges alone during his court appearance. Gambaryan, a U.S. citizen, was formally served with the charges for the first time during the hearing but did not enter a plea. His lawyer objected to the charges, asserting that Gambaryan held no decision-making power at Binance and had not received written instructions from the exchange to represent them.

Regulatory Challenges for Global Cryptocurrency Exchanges

Furthermore, Central bank Governor Olayemi Cardoso had previously accused Binance of handling $26 billion in untraceable transactions, contributing to the heightened scrutiny of the exchange’s activities in Nigeria.

Despite the charges against Binance executives, the exchange itself has not been indicted by Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). However, the EFCC has contended that Gambaryan could face the charges on the exchange’s behalf.

Gambaryan’s lawyer argued that according to Nigerian law, his client could not enter a plea until Binance, as the first defendant, had been served with the charges. Gambaryan is scheduled to be arraigned for the money laundering and tax evasion charges on April 8 and 19, respectively.