Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja has postponed the bail hearing for detained Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan to May 17. Gambaryan has been detained in Nigeria since February due to claims that Binance was involved in currency manipulation, which allegedly led to the devaluation of the naira.
Gambaryan, who holds American citizenship and previously served as a special agent with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), currently serves as Binance’s head of financial crime compliance.
He, along with Nadeem Anjarwalla, Binance’s regional manager for Africa and a citizen of both the UK and Kenya, were arrested and detained on February 26. They had traveled to Nigeria’s capital city of Abuja for a meeting with the Nigerian government, which had been requested by the government itself.
Initially, Nigerian authorities did not confirm the detention of Gambaryan and his colleague, Anjarwalla, who was later placed under house arrest upon their arrival in Nigeria and subsequently charged with money laundering and tax evasion.
Following Anjarwalla’s escape in March, Gambaryan was transferred to Kuje prison. Anjarwalla holds dual nationalities from Britain and Kenya; he escaped using his Kenyan passport. He was later arrested in Kenya on April 22. He may be sent back to Nigeria to face the charges.
The trial for money laundering charges against Gambaryan and Binance is scheduled to commence on May 2. Separately, the tax evasion charges will be tried starting on May 17.
Gambaryan and Anjarwalla have taken up cases against Nuhu Ribadu, the National Security Advisor of Nigeria, and the Economic Financial Crimes Commission for alleged abuses of human rights. Lawsuits that are followed keenly are taken to have far-reaching impacts of starting legal battles on global business and diplomatic ties.
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