Nigeria releases Binance executive, concluding 8 months of detention

Author: Wenser, Odaily Planet Daily

On October 24, Binance CEO Richard Teng publicly stated: "We are deeply relieved and grateful that Tigran Gambaryan has finally been released after being detained in Nigeria for nearly eight months. During this difficult time, Tigran Gambaryan has shown tremendous strength, and we commend his resilience in such severe adversity. We are very thankful to everyone who has spent countless hours supporting Tigran's release."

This also officially marks the conclusion of the previous incident regarding "Binance executives detained in Nigeria," and fortunately, it is a story with a happy ending.

In this event, we may also gain insight into the "relationship" between the cryptocurrency industry and government regulatory forces. Odaily Planet Daily will provide a brief retrospective on this matter for readers' reference.

Decoding Tigran Gambaryan: Former IRS Agent, Now Executive at a Cryptocurrency Exchange

In September 2021, Tigran Gambaryan officially joined Binance. It is understood that during his tenure at the IRS, he led several multi-billion dollar cyber investigations, including investigations into the Silk Road website and the Mt. Gox hacking incident.

At that time, he held the position of Vice President of Global Intelligence and Investigations at Binance. Meanwhile, Binance announced that another former IRS agent, Matthew Price, would serve as Senior Director of Investigations. Binance stated that it would focus on compliance and work with global regulatory agencies. CZ also stated in his announcement at the time: "The Binance investigation team now includes the world's top investigators, and this level of experience will make Binance a leader in compliance, enhancing trust in Binance and the entire cryptocurrency ecosystem."

As an experienced agent, Gambaryan investigated multiple cases involving national security, terrorism financing, identity theft, child pornography distribution, tax evasion, and violations of the Bank Secrecy Act during his ten years in the IRS Criminal Investigation Cyber Crime Division, laying a solid foundation for his involvement in cryptocurrency compliance-related business.

After taking office, Gambaryan's work performance also corroborated this.

In May 2022, possibly under his influence, Binance announced that renowned expert in global cybercrime, former Europol EC3 dark web team cryptocurrency asset expert Jarek Jakubcek, joined Binance as the Director of Intelligence and Investigations for the Asia-Pacific region.

In June 2022, Gambaryan stated that the Indian community's interest in Binance Blockchain Academy content was increasing, and Binance hoped to encourage wise and thoughtful participation in the Indian digital asset ecosystem through appropriate education. A series of India-focused educational programs had been launched. India could become a global hub for blockchain, cryptocurrency, and Web3 talent, and achieving this goal should include creating an environment for startups to nurture and grow to meet the needs of Indian customers.

In August 2022, the Binance compliance team stated that Binance was vigorously implementing KYC policies, which, although causing significant losses in the short term, were still being enforced very firmly. According to official responses, it lost 90% of its customers, with revenue losses amounting to billions of dollars.

In September 2022, Binance announced the launch of the industry's first global project—the "Global Law Enforcement Training Program," aimed at helping law enforcement agencies and prosecutors identify financial and cyber crimes and assist in prosecuting malicious actors. The training program was led by the Binance investigation team, including Gambaryan.

At that time, Binance and Nigeria were also in a "honeymoon period," with both sides even planning to establish a digital economic zone that would help local entrepreneurs quickly track blockchain technology. According to a statement from the Nigerian Export Processing Zone Authority, the partnership aimed to establish a digital center "similar to the Dubai Virtual Free Zone." After all, at that time, the number of cryptocurrency holders in Nigeria had exceeded 22 million, making it the undisputed "largest cryptocurrency market" in Africa.

However, soon, as time moved into 2023, the relationship between the two sides took a sharp turn, laying the groundwork for this year's "Binance executives detained in Nigeria" incident.

Nigeria vs. Binance: When Cryptocurrency Institutions Face National Power

In July 2023, the Nigerian Securities Regulatory Commission stated in a notice that all activities of Binance were not registered with the agency and were not under its regulation; therefore, all cryptocurrency-related activities by Binance were illegal. The notice also ordered all cryptocurrency platform providers to stop soliciting Nigerian citizens.

In February 2024, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Olayemi Cardoso, stated that in 2023, $26 billion worth of cryptocurrency funds with "insufficient" identifiable sources flowed through Binance Nigeria. This finding was made against the backdrop of Nigeria facing a foreign exchange crisis and seeking to limit capital outflows, with the local currency, the naira, reaching an all-time low on Wednesday.

On February 26, two Binance executives, Tigran Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla, were detained by Nigerian authorities on charges related to money laundering and financing terrorism. (Dramatically, the latter later successfully escaped from custody.)

In March, media reports indicated that the Nigerian government planned to sue Binance for at least $10 billion, claiming that Binance profited from "illegal transactions," harming national interests. It was reported that Binance was under investigation in Nigeria, and the exchange had removed the Nigerian naira from its peer-to-peer services. Additionally, local news media reported that a Nigerian court ordered Binance to provide the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) with comprehensive information on all individuals trading on its platform in the country. Previously, it was reported that Nigeria demanded Binance hand over information on the country's top 100 users and all transaction histories from the past six months.

From this move, it is hard not to suspect that Nigeria's detention of Binance executives may have been motivated by ideas of "collecting protection fees" or "extorting money."

Of course, a series of subsequent measures by the Nigerian authorities quickly brought about a new round of confusion—repeatedly delayed hearing dates and a tumultuous local situation:

At the end of March, the Nigerian government accused Binance of laundering $35 million and announced that the "detention case of Binance executives" would hold a hearing on April 4;

In early April, Bloomberg reported that Nigeria postponed the lawsuit against Binance executives to April 19;

On April 22, Judge Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja ruled to postpone the tax evasion lawsuit hearing against Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan until May 17.

In May, Judge Emeka Nwite set June 14 as the possible date for a hearing regarding Binance and Gambaryan.

Although Binance stated in April: "Tigran Gambaryan is a strict law enforcement professional and is not part of Binance's management. Binance urges that during discussions between Binance and Nigerian government officials, Tigran Gambaryan, who has no decision-making power in the company, should not be held accountable," the Nigerian side still pursued the matter relentlessly. In May, the Nigerian Ministry of Information claimed it intended to investigate the $150 million bribery allegations against the Binance CEO.

The turning point came in June.

On one hand, after the "detention incident of Binance executives," Uwakwe, head of the relevant community working group in Nigeria's blockchain sector, stated that investors were concerned about the potential impact of investing in local Web3 companies, fearing a fate similar to that of Binance. He pointed out that parties that had already invested were gradually withdrawing their investments.

On the other hand, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) of Nigeria withdrew the tax charges against Binance executives Tigran Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla, while the relevant executives remained in prison, with the trial scheduled for June 20. Notably, prior to this, Tigran Gambaryan was suspected of contracting malaria, with severe symptoms.

Additionally, as a former U.S. government employee, Tigran Gambaryan's detention also attracted attention from the U.S. side.

Fox Business Channel reporter Eleanor Terrett reported that pro-cryptocurrency U.S. Congressman French Hill, along with colleague Chrissy Houlahan, visited detained Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan in Nigeria, who had been suffering from malaria and pneumonia during his three months of detention. Hill stated that Gambaryan was "wrongfully detained by the Nigerian government." The two congressmen described the difficult conditions Gambaryan was in and urged the U.S. Embassy in Nigeria to advocate for his release on humanitarian grounds.

Subsequently, it was reported that French Hill, Vice Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, was also leading efforts to push the Nigerian government to release detained Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan.

Despite this, the Nigerian side did not directly release Gambaryan and postponed the trial for Binance's money laundering case to July 5, October, and even once delayed the bail hearing for Binance executives to October 9.

In September, Tigran Gambaryan, due to poor health, even pleaded with a Nigerian judge to allow him to undergo back surgery, but his request for bail due to illness was subsequently denied.

Finally, in October, a group of 18 state attorneys general urged President Biden to help ensure the release of Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan, who had been detained in Nigeria since February 2024. The Attorney General requested that Biden designate Gambaryan as a hostage under the Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act. According to a joint letter issued on October 18, the organization expressed concern over Gambaryan's deteriorating health and the illegal nature of his detention. Attorney General Formella wrote in the letter: "His continued detention without cause not only violates his rights but also poses a serious threat to his health and well-being… We have a responsibility to advocate for the rights of American citizens abroad, and we urge the federal government to exert the necessary diplomatic pressure to ensure his release."

Finally, after multiple negotiations, on October 23, the Nigerian government dropped all charges against Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan, who had been facing trial in a local detention center since April. On Wednesday morning local time, a lawyer representing the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) announced the withdrawal of charges in the Federal High Court in Abuja.

Conclusion: Binance's Global Expansion Will Not Stop, and Cryptocurrency Development Will Continue

As Binance CEO Richard Teng stated after Gambaryan's release: "Binance remains committed to working with global regulatory agencies to ensure compliance and transparency in the ever-evolving digital asset space. We hope to put this incident behind us and continue to work towards creating a brighter future for the global blockchain industry. Nigeria has a young, tech-savvy population with a strong interest in digital finance and is fully capable of leveraging blockchain technology to address economic and social challenges. We look forward to playing a constructive role in this effort."

On the long road of cryptocurrency development, there are always some individuals making various efforts to promote the mainstream adoption of cryptocurrencies. Sometimes, when faced with a complex external environment, one has no choice but to "carry the burden forward." However, the development of cryptocurrencies and digital assets will not stop because of this; instead, it will become more resilient and accelerate.

Gambaryan is merely a microcosm and representative of industry professionals dedicated to building the sector, and in the future, more cryptocurrency builders will continue to forge ahead, allowing the brilliance of decentralized networks to shine across more lands and nations.