Binance ends Naira Services in Nigeria following the arrest and detainment of at least two of its staff. Their decision to discontinue the NGN service on its platform was fast-tracked after the government decided to fine it.
The exchange platform was accused of exploiting and devaluing the Naira which was free falling in value at a sporadic rate against the dollar.
In addition, the exchange is accused of, among other things, tax evasion, money laundering, and financing terrorism.
Among the world’s biggest peer-to-peer cryptocurrency markets is Nigeria. According to Chainalysis, the total value of cryptocurrency transactions in the nation between July 2022 and June 2023 was $56.7 billion.
However, the company suggested in a statement on Tuesday that users either withdraw NGN, sell their NGN assets, or convert NGN into cryptocurrency.
Before these NGN services are discontinued, users are urged to withdraw NGN, exchange their NGN assets, or convert NGN into cryptocurrency, according to the statement.
“From 2024-03-08 08:00 (UTC), any remaining NGN balances in users’ Binance accounts will be automatically converted to USDT based on the conversion rate below.
“Binance will not support deposits of NGN after 2024-03-05 14:00 (UTC). Withdrawals of NGN will not be supported after 2024-03-08 06:00 (UTC).
“After 2024-03-08 08:00 (UTC), Binance will convert any remaining NGN balances in users’ Spot and Funding wallets into USDT on behalf of users at a ratio of 1 USDT = 1,515.13 NGN.
“Please note that the conversion rate is calculated based on the average closing price of the USDT/NGN trading pair on Binance Spot in the last seven days.
“The conversion may take approximately up to 24 hours or longer. USDT tokens will be credited to users’ Spot wallets thereafter, and users can confirm receipt of the tokens via the Convert History page.
“If users hold less than 0.00000001 USDT worth of NGN in their Spot and Funding wallets, they will each receive 0.00000001 USDT in their Spot wallets after the conversion.”
The National Security Adviser’s office officers detained and confiscated the passports of the two executives when they flew into Nigeria last week in response to a restriction on their website, as reported by the Financial Times.
The government was clamping down on cryptocurrency exchanges in an attempt to curb naira speculation when the arrest occurred.
The Nigerian Communications Commission, acting on behalf of the government, has recently restricted the internet platforms of Binance and other cryptocurrency companies in an effort to stop what it views as ongoing manipulation of the foreign exchange market and unlawful money transfers.
Additionally, Bureau De Change operators were detained at Abuja’s Popular Wuse Zone 4 by agents of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
Instead of showing up in person before the House Committee on Financial Crimes on Monday as scheduled, the management of the foreign company sent attorneys to represent them.