A day prior to the revelation of their detainment, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Yemi Cardoso, disclosed on Tuesday that a staggering $26 billion had traversed Binance Nigeria within the past year from undisclosed origins.
In the aftermath of the detention and interrogation of two Binance executives by the Office of the National Security Adviser, sources indicate that more cryptocurrency platform leaders in the country will be summoned for questioning. The Federal Government, through this initiative, aims to expand its scrutiny beyond Binance.
This move follows a prior report by the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), which highlighted concerns about the platform's potential involvement in terrorism financing and other criminal activities, posing threats to the Naira and national security.
The National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, is reportedly actively working on implementing the recommendations derived from the NFIU report. The purpose of summoning executives from various cryptocurrency platforms is to address and rectify illicit activities that may be contributing to corruption within the country.
Just a little over a week ago, the Federal Government imposed restrictions on cryptocurrency trading platforms, instructing telecom companies to block access to their websites. Prominent platforms like Binance, OctaFx, and Coinbase were affected by these measures.
The detained Binance executives, one American and one British-Pakistani, flew into Nigeria following the decision to restrict the platform's operations. The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria expressed concerns about dubious practices within these platforms, citing illicit flows and suspicious transactions.
"We are concerned that certain practices go on that indicate illicit flows, going through a number of these entities and suspicious flows. In the case of Binance, in the last year, $26 billion has passed through Binance Nigeria from sources and users who we cannot adequately identify," stated Yemi Cardoso during a press briefing after the Monetary Policy Committee meeting.
Sources familiar with the ongoing crackdown suggest that the National Security Adviser intends to leverage this opportunity to send a strong message, deterring others from engaging in activities that could undermine the integrity of the Nigerian financial system.