Binance exchange announced that Nigerian authorities have dropped certain criminal charges against their executives of the leading cryptocurrency exchange who has been detained in Nigeria since April.
See Also: Binance Exchange Accuses The Nigerian Government of Demanding $150 Million Bribe In Crypto
How The Binance Exchange Executives Were Apprehended
Two Binance executives, Tigran Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla, were detained in Nigeria for the past few months against their will.
The detentions came amid allegations that the exchange has been making illegal transaction profits within the country.
Gambaryan, a U.S. citizen, and Anjarwalla, a dual citizen of the UK and Kenya, arrived in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, on February 25.
The following day, they were taken to a government facility and detained after meeting with Nigerian officials, according to a report by Wired, which cited their families. Their passports were confiscated, and the officials did not inform them of any charges.
The two Binance exchange representatives were reportedly invited by Nigerian authorities to address accusations that Binance had profited from illegal transactions in Nigeria.
Previous reports indicated that Nigerian authorities demanded at least $10 billion from Binance for these alleged illicit activities.
See Also: CEO Of Binance Exchange Summoned By The Nigerian House Of Reps
Who Dropped The Charges?
According to a Binance exchange spokesperson, the Federal Inland Revenue Service of Nigeria filed revised charges on Friday, leading to the dismissal of tax fraud accusations.
However, Gambaryan, Binance’s head of financial compliance, still faces charges of money laundering and currency speculation from another agency.
The amendment indicates that Gambaryan is not a decision-maker at Binance and his detention is unnecessary for resolving the company’s issues with the Nigerian government, the spokesperson noted.
They expressed hope that the court would completely discharge Tigran from the matter alongside Nadeem Anjarwalla, another Binance executive detained alongside Gambaryan and holding UK and Kenyan citizenships.
Dare Adekanmbi, a spokesperson for the Federal Inland Revenue Service, confirmed that charges against the two individuals and Binance were being dropped.
Nigeria has refuted claims from US lawmakers that Gambaryan, a US citizen, has been wrongfully detained. A group of Republican lawmakers recently urged President Joe Biden to assist in securing Gambaryan’s release.
Previously, Gambaryan faced charges from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for tax evasion, currency speculation, and money laundering involving $34 million, to which he pleaded not guilty.
The Binance spokesperson expressed hope that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission would take similar steps to allow Tigran to return to his family.
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