Binance CEO Richard Teng has called on the Nigerian government to release Tigran Gambaryan, head of the crypto exchange’s Financial Crime Compliance team, who has been in detention for over 70 days while also claiming bribe allegations against the Nigerian government.
The Binance CEO made this known in a blog post on Tuesday as the cryptocurrency giant was demanding the release of its executive, Tigran Gambaryan, who was arrested when he flew into Nigeria in the company of Nadeem Anjarwalla for regulatory supervision.
He wrote: “As you may be aware, one of our beloved colleagues, Tigran Gambaryan, continues to be held by the government in Nigeria for more than 70 days.”
However, he emphasized “to invite a company’s mid-level employees for collaborative policy meetings, only to detain them, has set a dangerous new precedent for all companies worldwide.”
The detention of the executive has stirred controversy, particularly with allegations emerging from the New York Times suggesting that Gambaryan was asked for a $150 million bribe during a visit in January.
The Binance CEO wrote “The message from the Nigerian government is clear. We must detain an innocent, mid-level employee and a former U.S. federal agent, and place him in a dangerous prison in order to control Binance.”
According to Teng, “Our team grew increasingly concerned about their safety in Nigeria and immediately departed.”
He further added, “We, of course, declined the payment demand via our counsel, not viewing it to be a legitimate settlement offer…”
The Nigerian government has not yet responded to these allegations or the calls for Gambaryan’s release.
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Meanwhile, Binance claimed it has been attempting to satisfy the regulatory requirements in Nigeria since 2022, but has encountered challenges in receiving responses from the Securities and Exchange Commission.
According to Teng, Gambaryan and the exchange’s regional manager for Africa, Nadeem Anjarwalla, were kept in a safe house in February following a meeting attended by the CEO of the SEC, the deputy governor of the central bank, and the national security adviser.
Although Nadeem Anjarwalla fled custody, yet was rearrested in Kenya.
Teng highlighted Gambaryan’s current confinement in Kuje prison with suspected members of the Boko Haram terrorist group. This raised concerns about his safety and treatment in prison.
Furthermore, these conditions led the executives to take legal action against the Nigerian authorities for what they perceive as violations of their human rights.
Recall that in February 2024, the Nigerian government had accused the cryptocurrency giant of creating an economic crisis by plunging the naira’s value against the dollar and soaring inflation rates.
Additionally, the government alleged that Binance facilitated the untraceable outflow of $26 billion last year, impacting tax revenues.
However, Binance refuted these claims.
