Nigeria’s Department of State Security detained two Binance employees in Abuja on Monday night, Feb. 26, as part of investigations into the cryptocurrency exchange’s activities in the country. The passports of an American and a British citizen, both Binance executives, were confiscated by authorities.
Reportedly, the executives traveled to Nigeria after the recent ban on several cryptocurrency trading platforms in the country. However, upon arrival, they were detained and had their passports seized. Details on the reasons for their detention were not provided by officials, and it’s unclear if they face any charges under Nigerian law.
This incident follows the Nigerian Communications Commission’s directive to block access to Binance, Kraken, Coinbase, and other cryptocurrency exchange websites. The move came amid accusations from various Nigerian government sectors that these platforms were involved in currency speculation and forex market manipulation. Nigeria’s central bank governor, Olayemi Cardoso, mentioned indications of illicit fund flows through platforms like Binance, citing $26 billion passing through “Binance Nigeria” in the past year from unidentified sources and users.
Meanwhile, Nigerians expressed concerns on social media that such actions by Nigerian authorities could deter investors.
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