The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is set to arraign Binance executives, Tigran Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla, on Thursday, on charges related to money laundering. Gambaryan serves as Binance's head of financial crime compliance, while Anjarwalla is the company's regional manager for Africa.
The charges, totaling $35.4 million, include operating a specialized financial business in Abuja without a valid license, violating sections of the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act. Anjarwalla, who escaped custody on March 25 with a smuggled passport, is expected to be arraigned in absentia.
Furthermore, a federal high court presiding judge ordered Binance to provide comprehensive data of all Nigerian traders on its platform to the EFCC, granting an interim order to investigate alleged money laundering and terrorism financing activities.
Additionally, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) plans to charge the defendants with tax evasion on April 4, following investigations into their financial activities.
These developments follow the detention of Anjarwalla and Gambaryan by Nigerian authorities, with Anjarwalla later transferred to a local hospital due to illness while in detention. In response, Gambaryan has filed a lawsuit against the Nigerian government, alleging violation of his fundamental rights.
