The Nigerian Federal Government is considering imposing a penalty of over $10 billion on Binance as part of efforts to stabilize the value of the country’s currency, the naira. Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, disclosed this in an interview with the BBC on Friday morning.
Onanuga claimed that Binance has gained substantial profits from what he termed as “illegal transactions” in Nigeria, contributing to significant losses for the nation. He pointed out that the company lacks registration in Nigeria and has no physical presence in the country. Moreover, some users allegedly exploited the platform to arbitrarily influence dollar-naira exchange rates, leading to a sharp decline in the value of the naira.
Providing further clarification, Onanuga emphasized that discussions are underway regarding compensation, and a fine is being contemplated, using the term “may.” The Presidential Spokesperson noted that Binance is cooperating with the Nigerian government by furnishing valuable information and has already suspended transactions denominated in naira.
The Office of the National Security Adviser has confirmed that Nigerian authorities are investigating the cryptocurrency exchange platform. This development follows Binance’s earlier admission of guilt, agreeing to pay $4.3 billion to settle criminal money laundering charges brought by the U.S. Department of Justice several months ago.
