Tigran Gambaryan of Binance is still being held in Nigeria. He might get out on bail. But who exactly is Gambaryan?
The past two years have been turbulent for Binance and some of its top executives.
After agreeing to pay $4.3 billion and settle with United States authorities, Changpeng Zhao, the founder, was imprisoned for four months and had to further pay another $50 million in penalties.
That was not all; Zhao had to step down as CEO.
With authorities going after Binance, claiming its role in enabling criminal entities and allowing United States citizens to trade unregistered securities, the exchange lost its market share in the country.
But, the arrest and detention of two of its employees in Nigeria led to further complications.
The Arrest In Nigeria, Binance Accused Of Money Laundering And Tax Evasion
Although Nadeem Anjarwalla, the Binance Regional Manager for Africa, managed to escape to Kenya, another, Tigran Gambaryan, a former IRS agent and the Head of Investigations at Binance, is still being held in the West African country.
Gambaryan has been held in a Nigerian prison for over 200 days now.
The good news is that he might be released on bail tomorrow, Friday, October 11.
Nigeria claims Binance enabled the manipulation of the Naira and was engaged in money laundering and tax evasion.
The problem is that there have been a series of controversial turns.
Gambaryan has been reportedly unwell and barred from accessing medical care.
At the same time, the presiding judge, who’s expected to give him bail, failed to attend a court hearing on Wednesday.
Instead, the judge attended a session at the National Judicial Institute in Abuja.
What happened this week and the fact that Gambaryan has not been given bail is why many claim the charges forwarded are bogus and politically motivated.
Why The Outcry? Who is Tigran Gambaryan?
Gambaryan is not your ordinary Binance employee. If anything, he is a key figure in crypto compliance.
Before joining Binance in 2021, he worked with the United States IRS as an agent.
He rose to prominence after seizing nearly 70,000 BTC (the largest haul in crypto forfeiture history) from an entity linked to the Silk Road.
Ironically, Gambaryan is facing accusations of crypto and financial crimes in Nigeria despite the irrefutable track record of fighting against similar crimes across the globe.
Many in crypto maintain he is innocent and his detention a gross injustice.
The argument is that Gambaryan is being held because of Nigeria’s issues with the exchange. Overall, it has nothing to do with the company’s employees.
Nigeria wanted Binance to pay over $4 billion as a settlement, but the exchange refused.
Now that Gambaryan is being held in Nigeria, there are speculations that the government is holding him as a pawn as they pressure Binance to resolve the dispute.
Still, Binance will re-enter the Nigerian market only if Gambaryan is released and all legal disputes are first resolved.
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Disclaimer: Crypto is a high-risk asset class. This article is provided for informational purposes and does not constitute investment advice. You could lose all of your capital.
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