THE Office of the National Security Adviser has said the Federal Government is investigating the operations of Binance, a cryptocurrency exchange company.
Financial Times had on Wednesday reported that two executives of the company were arrested and detained by the Nigerian government.
The international news platform stated that the executives flew into the country last week following a ban on their website.
The Nigerian Communications Commission had on February 21, 2024, blocked online platforms like Binance and other crypto firms to avert the continuous manipulation of the forex market and illicit movement of funds.
Speaking in an interview with our correspondent on Thursday, the Head of Strategic Communication, Office of the National Security Adviser, Zakari Mijinyawa, said the office was coordinating the activities of other agencies to investigate the operations of the company.
He said, “The office is leading and coordinating an interagency process by law enforcement officers – this includes ongoing investigations into the operations of Binance. Outcomes from this interagency investigation will be made available in due course. “
He, however, did not deny or confirm that the two executives were arrested.
Binance is an online exchange where users can trade cryptocurrencies.
The Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, at a press briefing after the 293rd meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee in Abuja on Tuesday, disclosed that more than $26bn was channelled through Binance without traces in the last one year.
He added that the CBN was moving to a very aggressive regulatory environment.
Also, a presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga on Wednesday while on Channels Television’s Politics Today stated that if punitive actions were not taken against Binance, their operations might destroy the country’s economy.
He said, “If we don’t clamp down on Binance, Binance will destroy the economy of this country. They just fix the rate.
“We have saboteurs. Look at what Binance is doing to our economy. That is why the government moved against Binance. Some people sit down using cyberspace to dictate even our exchange rate, hijacking the role of the CBN.
“They just sit down and fix anything they like. It’s sabotage and we are trying to prevent that from happening henceforth.”