THE head of financial crime for the crypto firm Binance, Tigran Gambaryan, has maintained the $150m bribery allegation was true.
Gambaryan had alleged that some members of the House of Representatives demanded a $150 million bribe from him during a meeting in Abuja to halt the probe.
Although his claims had since been dismissed by the lawmakers and the Federal Government, he reaffirmed that all that happened was nothing but the truth.
The controversy between Binance and Nigerian authorities dates back to early 2024 when the government accused the cryptocurrency platform of manipulating foreign exchange rates.
The government subsequently detained Gambaryan and another Binance executive, Nadeem Anjarwalla, when they arrived in Nigeria for discussions in February 2024.
While Anjarwalla later escaped, Gambaryan remained in custody until he was released based on the intervention of the US authorities.
Reacting on his verified “X” page, he said: “Many requested that I stay on and provide further commentary on the issues I posted about yesterday. Here’s the hard truth: what I shared was meant to fill in the gaps left by Wired and NPR’s reporting.
“The reality is that last year was incredibly painful for me and my family. I dedicated my life to fighting crime as a Special Agent with the United States Department of the Treasury and as a compliance profession.
“It was an honor to serve my country and it was a blessing that they came to my rescue and mobilised the full force of the U.S. government when I was in need. Being dragged through court on outrageous, baseless, and trumped-up charges didn’t just hurt me—it also brought immense pain to my family.
“I don’t want to see my kids cry because I’m not around. I don’t want to see videos of my 75-year-old mother on television in tears. I don’t want to see my wife crying on TV. I want to put this nightmare behind me and move on.
“What I shared was factual, based on my personal experiences and conversations with those who have direct knowledge of the events I discussed. Information that was shared with both Nigerian and U.S law enforcement. So please, allow me to leave this behind and find peace.
“I am no longer in law enforcement. The responsibility of seeing this through to a logical conclusion now falls on those still serving in United States and Nigeria.”
