Binance $150m bribe saga: Jailed exec accuses 4 Nigerian lawmakers

Jailed Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan has accused four members of the Nigerian House of Representatives of allegedly asking Binance for a $150 million bribe in 2024 while fingering Nuhu Ribadu, the National Security Adviser, of wanting billions in payouts to fund his future political ambitions.

In a tweet on Friday, the head of Binance’s investigations team, who spent eight months in detention, revealed that the cryptocurrency platform held a meeting with three members of the house who wanted a $150 million bribe, paid in cryptocurrency into their personal wallets.

“Two of them were Peter Akpanke and Philip Agbese, both working under the leadership of Ginger Obinna Onwusibe. There was a third House member, but I don’t recall his name. They set up fake cameras and media to make the meeting appear official, but the cameras weren’t even plugged in. As you may already know, this ended with them asking for a $150 million bribe, paid in cryptocurrency, into their personal wallets. A Mickey Mouse operation at its best,” he tweeted.

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Peter Akpanke represents the Obanliku/Obudu /Bekwara Federal Constituency of Borno State on the People’s Democratic Party platform. Philip Agbese represents the Ado/Ogbadigbo/Okpokwu federal constituency of Benue State on the All Progressives Congress platform. Ginger Onwusibe represents the IsialaNgwa North/IsialaNgwa South constituency of Abia state on the Labour Party platform.

In May of 2024, Richard Teng, Binance’s chief executive officer, alleged that the company had been asked to pay $150 million to make its troubles disappear. “On a trip to Nigeria in January, Tigran Gambaryan, a compliance officer for the giant cryptocurrency exchange Binance, received an unsettling message: The company had 48 hours to make a payment of roughly $150 million in crypto,” he alleged.

The Federal Government has since denied this. Rabiu Ibrahim, the Special Assistant to the Minister of Information and National Orientation, stated, “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.”

However, Gambaryan, who recently detailed his Nigerian experience in an interview with Andy Greenberg of Wired, has revealed more about what transpired between him and Nigerian officials in 2024.

He noted that the Department of State Security (DSS) was involved in the House of Representatives matter, and Binance met with a team that revealed that they (Binance) had to comply with whatever the House members instructed them to do.

Gambaryan alleged that Ribadu invited the Binance team to the official meeting and worked through Sa’ad Abubakar. “This was a sold as a friendly meeting with the NSA, the head of the SEC, and the CBN governor and include the discussion of the bribe that was solicited by the house of representatives,” he highlighted.

He disclosed that the $26 billion that was said to have been the worth of trade in a year was not true as it was the cumulative trade date of Nigerians on the platform, and the money didn’t leave Nigeria.

In February, Olayemi Cardoso, governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), disclosed that $26 billion flowed through Binance Nigeria in one year from sources and users the apex bank could not identify.

“This money didn’t leave Nigeria—it was just people buying and selling crypto. For example, if you trade $100 a hundred times, that’s $10,000 in trade volume, but in reality, you only used $100,” the Binance exec noted.

Gambaryan revealed that Nigeria sent a letter to the U.S. Embassy and the British High Commission, falsely claiming that he and Nadeem Anjarwalla, the Kenya-based manager for the crypto exchange for Africa, were voluntarily participating in strategic talks.

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Gambaryan further accused Ribadu of abuse of office, which led to limited visas for the Nigerian delegation to UNGA.

In later February, Cardoso confirmed an ongoing collaboration between different agencies, including the Police, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, and the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA). In March, the ONSA confirmed the investigation of Binance.

“Ribadu emphasised that he wanted billions in payouts to fund his future political ambition… Ribadu overstepped his authority and embarrassed Nigeria in front of U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan. Ribadu acting like an asshole angered the White House and led to diplomatic repercussions—the U.S. limited visas to the Nigerian delegation for UNGA, and Biden refused to meet with Tinubu until my situation was resolved,” Gambaryan alleged.

Gambaryan was released in October 2024 after pressure from the United States. Earlier in February, he gave an exclusive interview to Andy Greenberg of Wired in which he detailed his Nigerian experience.