Binance Executive Collapses During Money Laundering Trial in Nigeria
Tigran Gambaryan, a high-ranking Binance executive who was detained in Nigeria, suffered a collapse during a court hearing at the Federal High Court in Abuja. The trial revolves around allegations of foreign exchange violations and money laundering brought by the Nigerian Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on May 22.
According to local media reports, Gambaryan had already informed the court of his illness on the morning of May 22, which caused him to miss a separate arraignment over tax evasion charges by Nigeria’s Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS). However, he did manage to attend the Federal High Court hearing for the money laundering case against him.
During the court proceedings, when the case against Binance for money laundering was called, Gambaryan did not respond and remained seated in the back row. Judge Emeka Nwite noticed his absence and asked for an explanation. Gambaryan’s lawyer, Mark Mordi, then helped him to the dock.
However, in a surprising turn of events, Gambaryan suddenly collapsed before reaching the dock. His lawyer had to assist him in sitting in the front row. Mordi informed the court that a written application detailing Gambaryan’s poor health condition had been previously submitted.
Due to Gambaryan’s sudden collapse, his lawyer requested an adjournment to allow the Binance executive to receive medical treatment. Mordi argued that it would be impossible to continue with the case considering his client’s medical emergency. As a result, the court scheduled cross-examination and the continuation of the trial for June 20 and 21. On May 16, the judge had denied Gambaryan’s bail request, citing concerns from the EFCC that he might flee if released from the Kuje Correctional Centre where he is currently detained.
Gambaryan was transferred to the Kuje Correctional Centre in Abuja in April 2024 after pleading not guilty to the money laundering charges brought against him by the EFCC.
In addition to the ongoing trial, the Nigerian government has accused Binance of manipulating foreign exchange rates through its cryptocurrency trading operations. In March, the FIRS filed tax evasion charges against Binance and its executives, including Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla. The charges include failure to register with the FIRS, failure to pay company income tax, failure to pay value-added tax, and facilitating tax evasion.
These legal issues have resulted in Binance effectively exiting the Nigerian crypto market. On March 5th, Binance announced that it would no longer facilitate transactions in the Nigerian naira currency. It had already delisted all naira trading pairs on its peer-to-peer platform in late February.
Binance CEO Richard Teng alleged in a statement that Nigerian authorities had attempted to coerce the exchange into an off-the-books settlement paid in cryptocurrency during meetings in early 2024.