Detained Binance executive in court on tax, money laundry charges
One of the two executives from Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, detained in Nigeria appeared in an Abuja court on Thursday to face tax evasion and money laundering charges.
Binance and two of its
executives Tigran Gambaryan, a U.S. citizen and Binance's head of financial
crime compliance, and Nadeem Anjarwalla, a British-Kenyan who is a regional
manager for Africa, have been charged with four counts of tax evasion and
with laundering over $35 million.
Gambaryan was served with
the charges for the first time since his detention during his court appearance
and did not take a plea. He will be formally arraigned for the money laundering
and tax charges on April 8 and 19, respectively, when his plea will be taken.
Binance itself has not
been charged by Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC),
which has argued Gambaryan could face the charges on the exchange's behalf.
Gambaryan's lawyer
Chukwuka Ikuazom objected, saying he was "neither a director, partner nor
company secretary" and had no written instructions from Binance to face
the charges on its behalf.
Ikuazom also argued that
since Binance and Gambaryan were jointly charged, he could not take a plea
until the exchange, the first defendant in the case, had been served, according
to Nigerian law.
Binance, which was not
represented in court and had no immediate comment, said on Wednesday that it
respectfully requested that Gambaryan, who had no decision-making power in the
company, was not held responsible while discussions are ongoing with the
Nigerian government.
Gambaryan has asked a
Nigerian court to release him.
Nigeria blamed Binance
for its currency woes after cryptocurrency websites emerged as platforms of
choice for trading the Nigerian naira currency, as the country grappled with
chronic dollar shortages.
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