Connect with us

News

Behind the arrest of a Binance employee in Nigeria, lies a request for a bribe

SatoshiTimes Staff

Published

on

Behind the arrest of a Binance employee in Nigeria, lies a request for a bribe

While traveling in Nigeria in January, Tigran Gambaryan, a compliance officer for the giant cryptocurrency exchange Binance, received a disturbing message: the company had 48 hours to make a payment of about $150 million in cryptocurrencies.

Mr. Gambaryan, a former U.S. law enforcement officer, interpreted the message as a request for a bribe from someone in the Nigerian government, according to five people familiar with the matter and the messages reviewed by The New York Times. He and a group of Binance colleagues had just met with Nigerian lawmakers, who accused the company of tax violations and threatened to arrest its employees.

Binance officials fled Nigeria in panic. Later that month, Mr. Gambaryan wrote a three-page report describing the payment demand and gave it to Binance lawyers, two people familiar with the report said. He also alerted Nigerian government contacts, the people said, and told them about the incident.

The episode was the backdrop to a second trip to Nigeria that Mr. Gambaryan made in February. Upon his return, he and a colleague, Nadeem Anjarwalla, were arrested by Nigerian authorities, sparking a crisis at Binance.

Mr. Gambaryan was detained in Kuje Prison in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, for the past four weeks, after being transferred there from a government compound on April 8. His case is the latest legal headache for Binance, which has agreed to a $4.3 billion fine last year to resolve allegations made by the U.S. government that it allowed criminal activity to flourish on its platform. In April, the company’s founder, Changpeng Zhao, was condemned to four months in prison for his role in these violations.

Nigerian authorities have accused both Binance and Mr. Gambaryan of tax evasion and money laundering. Binance has denied that Mr. Gambaryan had some “decision-making power” within the company.

“The message from the Nigerian government is clear,” Binance CEO Richard Teng wrote in a blog post on Tuesday. “We must detain an innocent mid-level employee and former US federal agent and place him in a dangerous prison so we can control Binance.”

Zakari Mijinyawa, a spokesperson for Nigeria’s national security adviser, said in a text that the Nigerian government will argue its case “based on facts and evidence, in accordance with due process.”

“We are confident that Nigeria has good reasons,” Mijinyawa said. “Binance will similarly have every opportunity under the rule of law to make its case and see justice done.”

In the blog post, Teng told the story of Binance’s engagement with Nigeria, which has become a hot spot for the cryptocurrency industry. She has the second highest rate of cryptocurrency adoption in the world behind India, according to Chainalysis, a data firm.

In 2023, Nigerian financial regulators released a statement ordering Binance to stop soliciting investors in Nigeria. Binance stopped its advertising in the country and offered to meet with government officials, Teng said.

But tensions continued to rise. In recent months, Nigerian officials have argued that trading on Binance contributed to the collapse of the country’s currency, the naira. And in December, a committee of the Nigerian House of Representatives requested that Binance representatives appear for a hearing.

On January 8, Gambaryan and a group of Binance employees met with these lawmakers. The meeting soon turned contentious: Lawmakers read aloud a list of charges against Binance, including tax violations. They also threatened to issue an arrest warrant for Mr Teng, the blog post said.

As Binance employees left the meeting, Mr. Teng wrote, they were approached by “unknown persons” who suggested they make a payment to resolve the charges. Later, a local lawyer representing Binance spoke to someone purporting to be an agent of the House committee, Mr. Teng wrote.

The alleged agent requested “a significant payment in cryptocurrency to be made in secret within 48 hours to resolve these issues,” Teng wrote. The amount was about $150 million, four people familiar with the matter said.

“Our team became increasingly concerned about their safety in Nigeria and left immediately,” Mr Teng wrote in his post. “We, of course, rejected the request for payment through our lawyer, not considering it a legitimate settlement offer.”

After leaving Nigeria in January, Mr. Gambaryan discussed the incident with colleagues and released his report describing the demand for payment, two people familiar with the matter said.

Later that month, Gambaryan began arranging meetings with Nigerian officials responsible for security and financial crimes. At the time, she noted that senior leaders in the Financial Crimes Bureau were eager to discuss what had happened at the Jan. 8 meeting, a person familiar with the conversations said.

In a text message last month, Dele Oyewale, spokesman for Nigeria’s Financial Crimes Commission, declined to comment on the payment solicitation. She did not respond to a request for comment Monday.

In his post on Tuesday, Mr Teng wrote that Binance had received assurances that Mr Gambaryan would be safe if he returned to Nigeria. A corporate consultant with deep local ties recommended that Binance officials meet with the office of Nigeria’s national security adviser, Teng wrote.

Gambaryan and Anjarwalla arrived at the meeting on February 26. After a couple of hours of discussion, Teng writes, a Nigerian financial crime official took Gambaryan aside and told him that “everything was going well.”

Then several Nigerian officials entered the room, demanding Binance provide granular information about its users in Nigeria, a request the company was unwilling to comply with. The passports of Mr Gambaryan and Mr Anjarwalla were confiscated, and the two men were held for three weeks in a secure compound. On March 22, their lawyers received word that criminal charges were coming.

Mr Anjarwalla ran away the next day. He left Nigeria and has not spoken publicly since.

Mr. Gambaryan was alone in the compound. Shortly after his arrival, Nigerian financial crime officials sent a note to the U.S. Embassy in Abuja, according to a copy of the message seen by the Times.

“It is important to emphasize that Mr. Tigran is currently in discussions with our team and the purpose of his stay is solely for the purpose of constructive dialogue,” the letter reads. “We assure you that the individual willingly participates.”

Mr Gambaryan was soon transferred to Kuje, a notorious facility where the Islamic State staged a prison break in 2022.

The trial was supposed to begin last Thursday, but the court postponed it to May 17.

Julian E. Barnes and Glenn Thrush contributed reporting from Washington and Sunday Isuwa from Abuja, Nigeria.

Fuente

We are the editorial team of SatoshiTimes, where seriousness meets clarity in cryptocurrency analysis. With a robust team of finance and blockchain technology experts, we are dedicated to meticulously exploring complex crypto markets with detailed assessments and an unbiased approach. Our mission is to democratize access to knowledge of emerging financial technologies, ensuring they are understandable and accessible to all. In every article on SatoshiTimes, we strive to provide content that not only educates, but also empowers our readers, facilitating their integration into the financial digital age.

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Información básica sobre protección de datos Ver más

  • Responsable: Miguel Mamador.
  • Finalidad:  Moderar los comentarios.
  • Legitimación:  Por consentimiento del interesado.
  • Destinatarios y encargados de tratamiento:  No se ceden o comunican datos a terceros para prestar este servicio. El Titular ha contratado los servicios de alojamiento web a Banahosting que actúa como encargado de tratamiento.
  • Derechos: Acceder, rectificar y suprimir los datos.
  • Información Adicional: Puede consultar la información detallada en la Política de Privacidad.

News

US Cryptocurrency Rules Delayed by ‘Never-Ending’ Lawsuits

SatoshiTimes Staff

Published

on

Ripple Pledges $25 Million Per Year to Crypto Super PAC

Ripple CEO says cryptocurrency industry still seeking regulatory clarity from US

Speaking to Bloomberg News on Wednesday (July 17), Author: Brad Garlinghouse he said America is behind behind other countries which have already adopted cryptocurrency regulations.

“What we’re seeing, where it’s the UK, Japan, Singapore… even the European Union, more than two dozen countries have come together to provide a framework for cryptocurrency regulation,” Garlinghouse said.

“It’s frustrating that we as a country can’t get that regulatory framework in place. And instead, we have this never-ending lawsuit coming from the SEC that doesn’t really address the problem.”

Ripple has been the target of some of these legal disputes. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sued the company in 2020, accusing it of conducting a $1.3 billion operation offering of unregistered securities tied to its XRP token.

However, last year a judge ruled that only Ripple’s institutional sales of XRP, not retail sales, violated the law, a decision widely seen as a victory for the cryptocurrency industry.

As PYMNTS noted at the time, that ruling has “far-reaching repercussions impact across the digital asset ecosystem, which has long maintained that its tokens do not represent securities contracts.”

However, Garlinghouse told Bloomberg on Wednesday that the company cannot wage multimillion-dollar legal battles over each token.

He spoke to the news agency from the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where the party is backing the candidacies of former President Donald Trump and Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, both of whom are considered pro-cryptocurrency.

But Garlinghouse argued that cryptocurrencies “should not be a partisan issue,” and noted that he had recently attended a conference in Washington that included Democrats, including White House officials.

“I think they were there, listening to the industry… it was refreshing to start having that conversation,” she said.

President Joe Biden earlier this year he vetoed a measure which would have ended the SEC’s special rules for crypto-asset custodians. This legislation was supported by both the digital asset industry and the banking industry.

Ripple early this year donated $25 million to the cryptocurrency industry’s super PAC Fair Smoothiewith Garlinghouse stating at the time that such donations would continue every year, as long as the industry had its detractors.

Second Open SecretsWhich monitor spending For campaigns, the PAC has spent $13.4 million this year, much of it to help defeat Rep. Katie Porter’s (D-Calif.) U.S. Senate campaign.



Fuente

Continue Reading

News

The Future of Cybersecurity in the Cryptocurrency Industry

SatoshiTimes Staff

Published

on

The Future of Cybersecurity in the Cryptocurrency Industry

The cryptocurrency space has had a tumultuous journey, with its fair share of ups and downs. As we look to the future, one area that remains a constant focus is cybersecurity. The digital nature of cryptocurrencies makes them inherently vulnerable to cyber threats, and as the industry evolves, so does the landscape of potential risks.

In 2022, the cryptocurrency market faced significant challenges, with over $2 trillion in market value lost. This event served as a wake-up call for the industry, highlighting the need for robust cybersecurity measures. The future of cryptocurrency security is expected to see a shift towards more regulated and established institutions taking the reins of crypto technology and blockchain infrastructure.

The decentralized nature of cryptocurrencies offers numerous benefits, such as transparency and financial inclusion. However, it also introduces unique security challenges. The risk landscape is filled with threats such as hacking, phishing, ransomware attacks, malware, and social engineering. These threats not only lead to financial losses, but also damage the reputation and trust within the cryptocurrency ecosystem.

Mini-MBA Tekedia edition 15 ((September 9 – December 7, 2024) started recordings; Register today for discounts reserved for early bird customers.

Tekedia AI in Business Masterclass Opens registrations Here.

Join the Tekedia Capital Syndicate and IInvest in Africa’s best startups Here.

The decentralized nature of cryptocurrencies offers many benefits, but it also presents unique security challenges. Cyber ​​risks such as hacking, phishing, and ransomware pose threats to the integrity of digital assets. The infrastructure that supports cryptocurrencies is not immune to vulnerabilities, including smart contract flaws and exchange hacks.

To address these vulnerabilities, the infrastructure that supports cryptocurrencies must be strengthened. Smart contract vulnerabilities, exchange hacks, wallet breaches, and flaws in the underlying blockchain technology are significant concerns that must be addressed to ensure the security and integrity of digital assets.

As cybercriminal tactics and techniques become more sophisticated, the cryptocurrency industry must stay ahead of the curve. The future will likely see more targeted attacks, exploiting weaknesses in infrastructure, networks, and human factors. This requires a proactive and multifaceted approach to cybersecurity.

To mitigate these risks, several measures must be adopted:

Strengthening security measures: Developers, exchanges, and wallet providers must improve security protocols, use strong encryption, implement multi-factor authentication, and conduct regular security audits.

Education and awareness: Users should be educated on best practices for protecting their digital assets, including using strong passwords, recognizing phishing attempts, and using hardware wallets for secure storage.

Looking ahead, the cryptocurrency industry is expected to see an increased focus on robust security measures. Blockchain projects and exchanges are likely to invest in advanced encryption techniques and decentralized storage solutions to protect user assets. The future impact of cyber risk on cryptocurrencies will depend on the collective efforts of stakeholders to address vulnerabilities and strengthen security measures.

Collective efforts by stakeholders in the cryptocurrency space are crucial to address vulnerabilities and strengthen security measures. While challenges persist, advances in cybersecurity technologies and practices offer hope for a more secure and resilient cryptocurrency ecosystem.

The future of cybersecurity in the cryptocurrency industry depends on finding a balance between innovation and regulation. It requires a collaborative effort from all parties involved, from developers to end users, to create a secure environment that fosters trust and growth in the industry. As we move forward, it is critical that lessons learned from past events guide the development of stronger security measures, ensuring the longevity and stability of cryptocurrencies as a vital part of the modern economic toolkit.

Like this:

Like Loading…



Fuente

Continue Reading

News

Bullish XRP and RLBK price predictions rise, outpacing the broader cryptocurrency market, prompting Shiba Inu holders to switch!

SatoshiTimes Staff

Published

on

Bullish XRP and RLBK price predictions rise, outpacing the broader cryptocurrency market, prompting Shiba Inu holders to switch!

Bitcoin’s one-week surge from $60,000 has pushed other cryptocurrencies into an uptrend. However, for many altcoins, this trend has been temporary. Altcoins such as XRP and Shiba Inu (SHIB) have experienced price drops. However, Rollblock, a new altcoin on the Ethereum blockchain, has thrived during this period, attracting thousands of investors looking for long-term growth.

XRP’s Nearly 30% Growth Over Last Week Drops as Selling Pressure Increases

XRP is seeing further price decline as Ripple investors withdraw their profits from the token. The surge in XRP’s price to $0.64 in the past week has provided investors with a perfect opportunity to increase their returns in the short term. With the ongoing sell-off in XRP, XRP has jumped over 8% in the past day and is now trading at $0.59. However, analysts tracking XRP indicators predict that XRP could still extend its gains by over 30% in the coming weeks.

Shiba Inu (SHIB) marks its third consecutive day of losses

Shiba Inu (SHIB) is in a period of adjustment after a week of strong gains. In the last 24 hours, SHIB has seen a jump of over 7%, reflecting a natural market fluctuation. Analysts are observing a death cross on the Shiba Inu chart, which historically signals the potential for future opportunities as the market stabilizes. As investors explore new possibilities, some are diversifying into promising altcoins like Rollblock (RBLK) to strategically rebalance their portfolios and capitalize on the emerging trend.

Rollblock (RBLK) Up Another 7% as New Investors Join Pre-Sale

Rollblock (RBLK) has taken the cryptocurrency market by storm, having attracted investors from more popular altcoins like Shiba Inu (SHIB) and XRP. Rollblock’s growth is attributed to its utility in the $450 billion global gaming industry.

Rollblock aims to use blockchain technology to bridge the gap between centralized and decentralized gambling. With blockchain technology, Rollblock secures every transaction in its online casino, providing transparency and convenience to millions of players who are uncomfortable placing bets on other iGaming platforms.

This innovative use of blockchain technology in the industry has grown Rollblock to over 4,000 new users in less than two months. With plans to add sports betting, this number is expected to grow exponentially in Q3.

Rollblock uses a revenue sharing model that splits up to 30% of its casino’s weekly profits with token holders. This happens after Rollblock buys back $RBLK from the open market and uses half of it for rewards. The other half is burned to increase the price of $RBLK.

Rollblock price has seen four increases in the past month with $RBLK tokens now selling for $0.017. Analysts predict that at the current growth rate, Rollblock could increase by over 800% before the presale ends. For investors looking for a long-term token with growth potential, phase four is the best time to buy Rollblock before its price skyrockets!

Discover the exciting Rollblock (RBLK) pre-sale opportunities now!

Website:https://Rollblockpresale.io/

Social: https://linktr.ee/Rollblockcasino

No spam, no lies, just insights. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Fuente

Continue Reading

News

Texas Crypto Miners Turn to AI as Crypto Declines

SatoshiTimes Staff

Published

on

Texas Crypto Miners Turn to AI as Crypto Declines

As cryptocurrency mining becomes less profitable, Texas cryptocurrency mining companies are switching to supporting artificial intelligence companies.

Bitcoin miners, with their sprawling data centers and access to significant energy resources, are ideally suited for computationally intensive AI operations, and as cryptocurrency mining becomes less profitable, companies see this shift as a logical answer to their problems.

On Thursday, Houston-based Lancium and Denver-based Crusoe Energy Systems announced a multibillion-dollar deal to build a 200-megawatt data center near the West Texas city of Abilene to support advanced artificial intelligence applications such as medical research and aircraft design, CNBC reported. The plant represents the first phase of a larger 1.2 gigawatt project.

Lancium and Crusoe’s move into AI mirrors a broader trend among bitcoin miners. The combined market capitalization of the top U.S.-listed bitcoin miners hit a record $22.8 billion in June. Companies like Bit Digital and Hut 8 are diversifying into AI, with Bit Digital securing a $92 million annual revenue deal to supply Nvidia GPUs and Hut 8 raising $150 million to expand its AI data center.

But the growing popularity of these operations also presents challenges, particularly for the Texas power grid. Last month, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas announced that the state is expected to nearly double its energy production by 2030 to meet the high energy demands of data centers and cryptocurrency operations.

Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick expressed concern about the projections.

“Cryptocurrency miners and data centers will account for more than 50% of the additional growth. We need to take a close look at these two sectors,” He wrote on Twitter/X. “They produce very few jobs compared to the incredible demands they place on our network. Cryptocurrency miners could actually make more money selling electricity to the network than they do from their cryptocurrency mining operations.”

Analysts predict significant growth in data center power capacity, which is expected to account for up to 9% of U.S. electricity consumption by 2030.

The operations also pose challenges for nearby cities. Earlier this month, TIME reported that a crypto-mining facility was seriously compromising the health of residents in the city of Granbury. TIME reported more than 40 people with serious health problems, including cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure and hearing loss. At least 10 of the residents needed to go to the emergency room or an urgent care facility.

The disturbances were caused by the extreme noise generated by the crypto-mining facility’s fans, which are used to keep the machines cool. While the proposed data center in Abilene would use liquid cooling systems, it’s still unclear whether the facility’s operations would pose a health risk to local residents.

Fuente

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © 2024 SATOSHITIMES.ORG. All rights reserved. This website provides educational content and highlights that investing involves risks. It is essential to conduct thorough research before investing and to be prepared to assume potential losses. Be sure to fully understand the risks involved before making investment decisions. Important: We do not provide financial or investment advice. All content is presented for educational purposes only.