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Three Nigerian Lawmakers Demanded $150m Bribe – Binance Executive
Tigran Gambaryan, an official at Binance Holdings Limited, has accused three Nigerian federal politicians of requesting a $150 million bribe during the cryptocurrency firm’s dispute with the Nigerian government.
Gambaryan claimed that the lawmakers requested that the payment be made in cryptocurrencies and deposited in their own digital wallets.
The executive was detained by the Nigerian government from February to October 2024 due to Binance’s actions in the country. He and Binance’s regional manager for Africa, Nadeem Anjarwalla, were apprehended in February 2024 after traveling to Nigeria to meet with government officials.
The federal government accused Binance of manipulating foreign exchange (FX) values, which harmed the Nigerian economy. Anjarwalla eventually fled custody in March 2024, leaving Gambaryan to face prosecution alone.
Gambaryan stated in a Friday post on social media platform X that he and Anjarwalla first met with Department of State Services (DSS) officials in January 2024 as a prerequisite for a meeting with House of Representatives members. He alleged that the DSS instructed them to comply with whatever the politicians demanded.
“At the House meeting, there were three members present. They set up fake cameras and media to make the meeting appear official, but the cameras weren’t even plugged in,” Gambaryan wrote.
“As you may already know, this ended with them asking for a $150 million bribe, paid in cryptocurrency into their personal wallets. A Mickey Mouse operation at its best.”
Binance’s CEO, Richard Teng, claimed in May 2024 that anonymous entities in Nigeria requested $150 million in digital currency to address the company’s legal issues in the country.
The Nigerian government has refuted the charges, accusing Binance of trying to blackmail the country.
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