Nigeria Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has withdrawn the tax evasion charges against Binance officials, Tigran Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla.
Following this, Binance which allegedly had an untaxed turnover of over $20 billion in Nigeria in 2023 alone, according to Nigeria Minister of Information, Idris Mohammed, will be left as the sole defendant in the case.
“We are relieved that the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) have served and filed amended charges today, resulting in tax charges against Tigran Gambaryan being dropped, further illustrating that Tigran is not a decision-maker at Binance and does not need to be held in order for Binance to resolve issues with the Nigerian government,” a Binance spokesperson said in a statement.
🇳🇬REGULATION | #Binance Had an Untaxed Turnover of $20 Billion in Nigeria in 2023 Alone, Far Above the Federal Budget for Health and Education, Says Minister of Information
The Minister noted that Binance’s turnover was not taxed by the government and exceeded Nigeria’s budget… pic.twitter.com/5pqCu4WEb9
— BitKE (@BitcoinKE) June 10, 2024
Although the tax evasion charges have been cancelled, Gambaryan, who has been in detention for more than 100 days, will remain in custody due to pending money laundering charges from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). His lawyers have disclosed that he has been diagnosed with malaria and pneumonia, and the court has not yet issued a ruling on these charges.
Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla were formally charged with tax evasion in March 2024 after the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) claimed they failed to pay taxes on cryptocurrency transactions worth billions of Naira. The crypto exchange was accused of not paying value-added tax and corporate tax, as well as failing to file tax returns.
Before the tax evasion charges, Gambaryan was taken into custody by the Nigeria anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and detained for several days before being released on bail. He first appeared in court on February 22, 2024, to face money laundering charges.
🇳🇬‘We Are Working to Bring Nadeem and Tigran Back to their Families,’ Binance Says of Officials Detained in Nigeria 🇳🇬
In an exclusive to BitKE, Binance has revealed updates on the ongoing situation and what is is doing to ensure a swift resolution to the matter.… pic.twitter.com/fRn58Z6rnB
— BitKE (@BitcoinKE) March 13, 2024
The move by FIRS comes one week after 16 U.S. lawmakers signed a letter to their President in which they accused Nigeria of holding Gambrayan over baseless charges.
“The charges against Mr. Gambaryan are baseless and constitute a coercion tactic by the Nigerian government to extort his employer, Binance,” the lawmakers wrote in a June 4 2024 letter to Biden pointing out that Mr. Gambaryan qualifies, a U.S. Citizen, was “wrongfully detained by a foreign government.”
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