Binance Says Compliance Exec Detained in Nigeria Has No Decision-Making Power at Firm

Binance's Head of Financial Crime Compliance Tigran Gambaryan, detained in Nigeria by local authorities, has no decision-making power at the company and should not be held responsible in ongoing discussions between the exchange and government officials, the crypto exchange said in a Wednesday statement.

Nigerian authorities invited, then detained, Gambaryan and the exchange's Regional Manager for Africa, Nadeem Anjarwalla, in February. Anjarwalla made headlines in March for having reportedly escaped custody. Around the same time, Nigeria's tax authority filed charges of tax evasion against Binance and the two executives.

Gambaryan and Anjarwalla have filed a suit in the Federal High Court in Nigeria's capital Abuja, stating that their human rights had been violated.

Local news outlets have reported that the court plans to arraign the two executives (Anjarwalla in absentia) on April 4.

"Binance respectfully requests that Tigran Gambaryan, who has no decision-making power in the company, is not held responsible while current discussions are ongoing between Binance and Nigerian government officials," the exchange said in Wednesday's blog post, akin to a character statement.

The Nigerian government has accused the crypto exchange of operating illegally in the country and tampering with the exchange rate for the Nigerian naira. The platform has since said it would discontinue its naira services.

CORRECTION (April 4, 08:37 UTC): Updates headline and first bullet point to reflect Gambaryan is the Head of Financial Crime Compliance at Binance. An earlier version of this story said he was Compliance Chief.