The President Bola Tinubu-led federal government has accused the leadership of cryptocurrency trading platform, Binance of attempting to blackmail the government amid an ongoing trial that the company is currently facing in the country.
This allegation was made in a statement released on Wednesday by Rabiu Ibrahim, the Special Assistant to the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Idris Malagi.
News360 Info recalls that Binance had alleged that some top government officials were demanding $150 million in cryptocurrency to settle the criminal charges levelled against the financial firm.
However, in the statement, the federal government argued that the claim lacked any substance and was intended to blackmail the government.
The statement read, “This claim by Binance CEO lacks any iota of substance. It is nothing but a diversionary tactic and an attempted act of blackmail by a company desperate to obfuscate the grievous criminal charges it is facing in Nigeria.
The facts of this matter remain that Binance is being investigated in Nigeria for allowing its platform to be used for money laundering, terrorism financing, and foreign exchange manipulation through illegal trading.
While this lawful investigation was going on, an executive of Binance, who was in court-sanctioned protective custody, escaped from Nigeria, and he is now a fugitive from the law. Working with the security agencies in Nigeria, Interpol is currently executing an international arrest warrant on the said fugitive.
The phantom bribe claim is part of an orchestrated international campaign by this company that is facing criminal prosecution in many countries including the United States, to undermine the Nigerian government.
We would like to remind Binance that it will not clear its name in Nigeria by resorting to fictional claims and mudslinging media campaigns. The only way to resolve its issues will be by submitting itself to unobstructed investigation and judicial due process.”
