The federal government has asked Binance for information on its top 100 users in Nigeria as well as all transaction history for the past six months.
According to the Financial Times, the request was made to establish negotiations between Binance and Nigeria.
Jerrymusa.com reports that in recent weeks, the FG has clamped down on Binance for undermining its efforts to stabilise the local currency, the naira.
The dispute between the government and Binance started when the special adviser to President Bola Tinubu on information and strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said Binance and other crypto platforms should be prohibited from operating in Nigeria.
How Binance Hijacks The Role of CBN
He alleged that Binance was “blatantly setting the exchange rate for Nigeria” and hijacking the role of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
A few days after Onanuga’s statement, the CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, said $26 billion passed through Binance from unidentified sources.
Cardoso said the apex bank, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and security agencies were working together to ensure there was no manipulation in the foreign exchange (FX) market.
On March 8, the crypto firm discontinued all transactions in naira on its exchange platform, following reports that the government demanded $10 billion as retribution for profiting from “its illegal transactions” in Nigeria.
In the meantime, the ONSA in Nigeria is requesting that the exchange settle any unpaid tax obligations, according to reports received by the Financial Times.
In its crackdown on the crypto firm, the FG detained executives identified as Nadeem Anjarwalla, a 37-year-old United Kingdom and Kenyan national and Binance’s regional manager for Africa; and Tigran Gambaryan, a 39-year-old United States citizen and Binance head of financial crime compliance.
Security organisations were collaborating to make sure the foreign exchange (FX) market wasn’t manipulated.