The federal government has debunked allegations made by Binance CEO, Richard Teng, accusing unidentified government officials of demanding $150 million in cryptocurrency payments to resolve a criminal investigation against the company.
The government refers to the claims as unsubstantiated and views them as a diversionary tactic by Binance to distract people from the serious charges it’s facing in Nigeria.
This was contained in a statement by the Special Assistant to the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Rabiu Ibrahim, on Wednesday, May 8.
The statement reads: “The federal government of Nigeria is aware of attempts by Binance to launder its impaired image as an organisation that does not play by the rules and laws guiding business conduct in sovereign nations.
“In a blog post that has now been published by many international media organisations, in an apparent well-coordinated public relations effort, Binance Chief Executive Officer Richard Teng made false allegations of bribery against unidentified Nigerian government officials who he claimed demanded $150m in cryptocurrency payments to resolve the ongoing criminal investigation against the company.
“This claim by Binance CEO lacks any iota of substance. It is nothing but a diversionary tactic and an attempted act of blackmail by a company desperate to obfuscate the grievous criminal charges it is facing in Nigeria.
“The facts of this matter remain that Binance is being investigated in Nigeria for allowing its platform to be used for money laundering, terrorism financing, and foreign exchange manipulation through illegal trading.
“While this lawful investigation was going on, an executive of Binance, who was in court-sanctioned protective custody, escaped from Nigeria, and he is now a fugitive from the law. Working with the security agencies in Nigeria, Interpol is currently executing an international arrest warrant on the said fugitive.”
