Binance CEO Decries Dangerous Precedent Against Employee.

Chief Executive Officer of Binance, Richard Teng, has described the detention of its employee, Tigran Gambaryan, by the Nigerian Government as ‘unjust’ and that it was a “dangerous precedent” for international businesses.

Teng also said, despite Binance’s repeated efforts at constructive engagement and cooperation with Nigerian authorities, Gambaryan remains in detention for ‘spurious’ reasons, adding that, the message from the Nigerian Government that, we must detain an innocent, mid-level employee, a former U.S. federal agent, and place him in a dangerous prison to control Binance, while Gambaryan continues to remain in detention at the Kuje Correctional Centre pending the determination of his bail application.

The Nigerian government blamed Binance for the naira depreciation, accusing it of fixing exchange rate prices on its platform, the biggest crypto exchange globally, while, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission accused Binance, Gambaryan, and his fleeing colleague, Anjarwalla, of concealing the source of the $35,400, 000 dollars generated as revenue by Binance in Nigeria, adding that, the funds constituted proceeds of unlawful activity.

Gambaryan, who was arraigned in April on charges including tax evasion, currency speculation, and money laundering, was scheduled for trial on May 2, while, the proceedings were postponed at a federal high court in Abuja due to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s failure to serve relevant materials to the defence.

Justice Emeka Nwite, who presided over the case, adjourned the hearing until May 17, while, the delay comes as Gambaryan awaits a ruling on his bail application.