Binance executive: How three lawmakers demanded $150m bribe during dispute with Nigeria

Tigran Gambaryan, an executive of Binance Holdings Limited, has accused three federal lawmakers of demanding $150 million bribe during the conflict between Nigeria and the cryptocurrency firm.

Gambaryan alleged that the legislators demanded that the kickback be paid into their personal digital wallets.

The executive was detained by the Nigerian government from February 2024 to October 2024 over the activities of Binance in the country.

Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla, Binance regional manager for Africa, were arrested in Nigeria in February 2024.

The federal government had accused the cryptocurrency firm of manipulating FX rates in Nigeria and destroying the country’s economy.

Both men were arrested after they travelled to Nigeria for a meeting with officials of the federal government.

A month later, Anjarwalla escaped from custody, leaving Gambaryan to face prosecution.

In a post published via X on Friday, Gambaryan said he and Anjarwalla met with some officials of the Department of State Services (DSS) in January 2024.

The Binance executive said the meeting was a prerequisite to the planned meeting with members of the house of representatives.

He added that the DSS officials asked them to comply with whatever the federal lawmakers asked them to do.

“At the House meeting, there were three members present. They set up fake cameras and media to make the meeting appear official, but the cameras weren’t even plugged in,” he wrote.

“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.”

Some Unknown Facts- you can read the rest in the Wired article and the NPR story.

The DSS was involved in the House of Representatives matter. We met with them at their office on Friday, January 5, 2024, as a prerequisite to our meeting with the House of Representatives. They…

— Tigran Gambaryan (@TigranGambaryan) February 14, 2025

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In May 2024, Richard Teng, the firm’s chief executive officer (CEO), alleged that some unknown persons in Nigeria demanded $150 million in digital currency to make their problems in the country “go away”.

Reacting to the allegation, the federal government accused Binance of blackmail.