FG files fresh charges against Binance, seeks $81.5bn in damages
The Federal Government has filed a lawsuit against Binance Holdings Limited in the Federal High Court, seeking compensation of $79.51 billion and ₦231 million for alleged economic damages resulting from the company’s operations.
In a case marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1444/2024, the third of its kind against Binance, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) is also demanding the company pay $2.001 billion in income taxes for the years 2022 and 2023.
FIRS claims that Binance, along with two of its executives—Tigran Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla—contributed to Nigeria’s economic losses by failing to register with the service.
Additionally, Binance is facing charges of tax evasion, money laundering, and violations of foreign exchange regulations. The case, which is being heard by Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja, was filed by the FIRS and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The lawsuit includes a 10% penalty for failure to pay taxes for 2022 and 2023, along with an annual interest rate of 26.75% (based on the Central Bank of Nigeria’s lending rate) starting from January 1, 2023, and January 1, 2024. Other penalties have also been proposed.
Binance is accused of violating several laws, including Nigeria’s Companies Income Tax Act, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (Establishment) Act of 2007, the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Regulatory Framework for Mobile Money Services, and the CIT Significant Economic Presence (SEP) Order, which applies to foreign companies generating at least ₦25 million annually from digital services in Nigeria.
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