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GuShiio.com鼔狮智能 Editor:鼔狮
Recently, the Nigerian government filed a jaw-dropping lawsuit against Binance, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, for a claim of $81.5 billion. Of this, $2 billion is unpaid taxes, and the rest is made up of other fines. Although Binance is likely to defend against these allegations, neither party has publicly responded to the matter so far.
Nigeria re-starts legal battle with Binance
Binance’s relationship with Nigeria can be described as twists and turns. As early as 2024, Nigeria accused Binance of suspected tax evasion and accused the platform of engaging in illegal currency manipulation. This marked the beginning of the legal battle between the two sides. Now, Nigeria has once again pointed the finger at Binance, filing a huge lawsuit of up to $81.5 billion.
According to relevant reports, the Nigerian government blamed Binance for the depreciation of its currency, claiming that the platform’s actions caused the country to suffer economic losses of $79.5 billion. This accusation undoubtedly pushed the conflict between the two sides to a new height.
In fact, this legal battle started as early as 2024. At that time, Nigeria arrested two Binance executives, and the incident quickly evolved into an international storm. In the end, the Nigerian government withdrew the relevant charges in October last year. However, judging from this lawsuit, Nigeria obviously does not intend to stop there.
Charges: Tax evasion, money laundering and foreign exchange violations
Nigeria’s specific charges against Binance include tax evasion, money laundering and violations of foreign exchange management regulations. Even considering the severity of these charges, the compensation amount of $81.5 billion still seems extremely exaggerated, and even makes people doubt its rationality.
While ignoring the lawsuit may not be a long-term solution, there is little chance that Binance will return to the Nigerian market in the short term. As of now, Binance has not made a public statement on the lawsuit, but there are reports that the company is actively defending the allegations.
It is worth mentioning that diplomatic pressure has played an important role in the Nigerian government’s decision-making in previous disputes. Therefore, whether Nigeria can win the case this time is still full of uncertainty.
Haze in Nigeria’s Crypto Field
Meanwhile, a report earlier this week attracted widespread attention: the Nigerian government is reportedly in contact with the LIBRA team to try to create a “meme coin” similar to the one promoted by Argentine President Javier Milei. If true, this move will undoubtedly further exacerbate the outside world’s doubts about Nigeria’s crypto policy.
Overall, the outlook for the crypto industry in Nigeria is not optimistic. Whether it is the legal dispute with Binance or the government’s various attempts in the crypto field, the country’s digital asset ecosystem is shrouded in a shadow. In the future, whether Nigeria can find a way to balance regulation and innovation remains unknown.
