Onanuga: Binance will destroy Nigeria’s economy if we don’t clamp down on them

Bayo Onanuga, special adviser to the president on information and strategy, says Binance will destroy Nigeria’s economy if the federal government does not clamp down on the company.

Speaking in an interview on Channels Television on Wednesday, Onanuga accused the firm of fixing foreign exchange (FX) rates arbitrarily.

Over the past months, Binance, a popular cryptocurrency trading platform, has been accused of manipulating FX rates in Nigeria.

Reacting to the allegation, the management of the crypto exchange said the firm does not operate as a price discovery platform, noting that FX rates are determined by complex forces that have nothing to do with the company.

On June 9, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had said the operation of Binance Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of Binance, was illegal.

Recently, media reports said the federal government had directed the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to block access to Binance and other cryptocurrency trading platforms.

On Tuesday, Olayemi Cardoso, governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), said $26 billion passed through the crypto platform from unidentified sources in one year.

Cardoso said the apex bank is collaborating with the SEC to eliminate price manipulations in the FX market.

On Wednesday, the Financial Times reported that the federal government had detained two top executives of the company.

The move came after the apex bank and the National Security Adviser (ONSA) entered a partnership to investigate and penalise those involved in illicit activities within the market a week ago.

Onanuga, speaking on the development, said some people stay in cyberspace to dictate the forex rate and “hijack” the role of the CBN.

The presidential aide added that the federal government is trying to prevent economic saboteurs from ruining the country.

“We have saboteurs. Look at what Binance is doing to our economy. That is why the government moved against Binance,” Onanuga said.

“Some people sit down using cyberspace to dictate our exchange rate, hijacking the role of the CBN.

“They just sit down and fix anything they like. It’s sabotage, and we are trying to prevent that from happening henceforth.

“We were told that if we don’t clamp down on Binance, Binance will destroy the economy of this country. They just fix the rate. That is economic sabotage.”

Onanuga said things were “terribly bad” when Tinubu took over in May 2023, adding that the country was already in trouble financially.