Nigerian authorities have imposed a $10 billion fine on Binance, the global crypto exchange at the center of a crypto crackdown in the country, a presidential aide told the BBC on Friday morning. Authorities have accused Binance of benefiting from “illegal transactions,” the aide said in the interview.
The fine comes barely 48 hours after news broke that security agencies detained two executives of the global crypto exchange. Both executives flew to Nigeria last week following a ban on their website and were arrested by the office of the National Security Adviser (NSA).
While the NSA initially denied reports of any arrests, it later confirmed that it was investigating Binance but did not share any details of the investigation.
On Tuesday, Olayemi Cardoso, the central bank governor, claimed “$26 billion has passed through Binance Nigeria from sources and users who we cannot identify.” There have been reports that the government has asked Binance for user data and details. It is unclear if the company has handed over the requested data.
*This is a developing story.
