Cryptocurrency exchange Binance appealed to the Nigerian authorities with a request not to prosecute its Vice President for Global Intelligence and Investigations, Tigran Gambaryan.
Representatives of the platform said that the detained top manager does not have the authority to make decisions in the company. For its part, the exchange continues negotiations with the Nigerian government.
Binance spoke about Gambaryan’s ten years of experience as a special agent IRS USA, as well as the investigations he leads into the darknet marketplace Silk Road, the BTC-e and Mt. Gox.
In September 2021, Gambaryan joined the Binance team. With his participation, in 2022 and 2023, the exchange helped law enforcement agencies around the world freeze and confiscate more than $2.2 billion in assets.
He responded to more than 600 requests for information from Nigerian law enforcement agencies or related to local investigations. The information provided helped solve “numerous crimes,” including money laundering and kidnapping, and led to the blocking of more than $400,000.
Binance emphasized that Gambaryan is not part of the exchange’s management and is solely responsible for ensuring proper governance and transparent practices in regulating financial activities.
Earlier, the top manager himself, who has been in custody in Nigeria since February 25, filed a complaint with the court against the actions of local authorities. The claim will be considered on April 8.
The director of Binance in West and East Africa, Nadeem Anjarwalla, who was detained at the same time, managed to illegally leave the country using a Kenyan passport. However, he filed a similar complaint.
Nigerian authorities accuse Binance Holdings Limited and two of its top managers of tax evasion.
They insist that individuals used the exchange to launder nearly $21.6 billion.
Binance was required to provide details of all Nigerian users and their transaction history. The platform was also required to settle any outstanding tax liabilities.
Binance could potentially face a fine of $10 billion.
Source: Cryptocurrency
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