Business

BREAKING: FG drops money laundering charges against Binance executive Gambaryan

Published

2 years ago

October 23, 2024

553 Views

The Federal government of Nigeria has dropped all charges against Tigran Gambaryan, an executive at Binance Holdings, who has been on trial for money laundering and currency speculations at the Federal High Court in Abuja.

The trial judge, Emeka Nwite, ordered Mr Gambaryan, a US citizen, to be immediately released from Kuje prison in Abuja, following a request by the prosecution during Wednesday morning’s proceedings.

The development, coming two days ahead of the previously scheduled hearing set for 25 October, which had been announced in open court last Friday, appears to be planned to avoid attracting widespread attention.

Meanwhile, the judge sustained the money laundering charges against Binance, a cryptocurrency firm, which now stands as the sole defendant in the case.

The firm is accused of money laundering and currency speculation involving as much as $34.4 million to the detriment of the Nigerian forex market and economy.

A lawyer, R.U. Adaba, representing the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) – the prosecuting agency – applied on Wednesday morning to the court to stop the prosecution of Mr Gambaryan.

She cited diplomatic interventions and the extent of the defendant’s involvement in the alleged crimes as the key reasons for the decision.

“The government has reviewed the case and, taken into consideration that the second defendant (Mr Gambaryan) is an employee of the first defendant (Binance Holdings Limited), whose status in the matter has more impact than the second defendant’s, and also taking into consideration some critical international and diplomatic reasons, the state seeks to discontinue the case against the second defendant,” Ms Adaba said.

She also cited Mr Gambaryan’s worsening health in custody.

She noted that “the health of the defendant has been a recurrent issue which the state has managed well at the correctional centre facility through NSA (the National Security Adviser.”

But despite the Nigerian government’s best efforts at caring for him, Ms Adaba said “the second defendant can barely walk without a wheelchair or crutches and in addition with other ailments.”

“A surgery had been recommended,” she added, and the recovery process “may take some time that may impact on the pace of the trial.

”Mark Mordi, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) representing Mr Gambaryan, agreed with the prosecution, saying that his client was not involved in the company’s broader financial decisions.

“We ask the court to expedite everything to ensure Mr Gambaryan leaves the facility of the correctional centre,” the senior lawyer said.

In addition to seeking his client’s discharge, Mr Mordi asked for full acquittal, citing Section 108 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) for the second defendant to be “discharged and acquitted.

Wednesday’s hearing marked the culmination of months of intense, behind-the-scenes diplomatic talks between Nigerian and US government officials, aimed at securing the release of Mr GambaryanIn the weeks leading up to the hearing, some US lawmakers had campaigned for the release of Mr Gambaryan, writing to relevant Nigerian and American authorities to intervene.

The pressure on the Nigerian government intensified after the trial court twice denied the defendant’s bail requests.

Business

Court jails illegal forex dealer two months

The EFCC stated that the defendant pleaded guilty after the charge was read to him.

Published

6 hours ago

August 5, 2026

OCHEFA

7 Views

A Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, has convicted and sentenced a bureau de change operator, Dabo Malam Ardi, to two months’ imprisonment for engaging in illegal foreign exchange transactions.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, in a statement on its official X account , said that Ardi was arraigned before Justice F. N. Ogazi by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 1 of the EFCC on a one-count charge bordering on illegal foreign exchange transactions.

The charge read, “That you, Dabo Malam Ardi, sometime in 2026 in Lagos State, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, engaged in a foreign exchange transaction other than through the official foreign exchange market and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 11(1)(a) of the National Economic Intelligence Committee (Establishment, etc.) Act, 1994, and punishable under Section 11(2) of the same Act.”

The EFCC stated that the defendant pleaded guilty after the charge was read to him.

Following the guilty plea, the prosecution counsel, S. I. Suleiman, reviewed the facts of the case and urged the court to convict and sentence the defendant accordingly.

Justice Ogazi subsequently found Ardi guilty and sentenced him to two months’ imprisonment, with an option of an N80,000 fine.

Business

Zenith Bank sends cyber-attack alerts to customers

It warned customers to ignore suspicious emails, text messages, and phone calls requesting sensitive banking information.

Published

7 hours ago

August 5, 2026

OCHEFA

10 Views

Zenith Bank has confirmed that hackers gained unauthorised access to part of its database, exposing limited customer information.

The bank says funds and accounts remain safe, and its banking systems have not been compromised.

The disclosure came in an email to customers on Tuesday, part of a coordinated global campaign targeting organisations across multiple sectors.

Zenith Bank said the attackers accessed a limited amount of customer information, including email addresses and phone numbers.

According to the bank, there is no evidence that hackers reached customers’ accounts, passwords, PINs, One-Time Passwords (OTPs), or funds.

The statement reassured customers that mobile and internet banking platforms, ATMs, and digital channels remain secure and fully operational.

Zenith Bank said it immediately activated its incident response protocols and cybersecurity safeguards after detecting the breach.

Investigations are ongoing, with security teams working to determine the full scope and strengthen protections against future threats.

The lender urged customers to stay vigilant against phishing attempts that often follow data breaches. It warned customers to ignore suspicious emails, text messages, and phone calls requesting sensitive banking information.

As reported by TheCable, Zenith Bank also reminded customers never to disclose passwords, PINs, OTPs, card details, or other security credentials to anyone, regardless of claims that the request comes from the bank. Cybersecurity experts have long warned that stolen contact details are often used for targeted phishing campaigns.