Economy
Wives of Detained Binance Executives in Nigeria Seek Intervention
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The detention of two executives of Binance, a popular cryptocurrency exchange platform, by the Nigerian government has continued to generate reactions.
Last month, on the invitation of the local authorities, Mr Tigran Gambaryan, an American citizen, and Mr Nadeem Anjarwalla, a British-Kenyan national, flew into the country but were immediately held by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).
The government accused the company of allowing its platform to be used for manipulating the country’s foreign exchange (FX) market, weakening the value of the domestic currency, the Naira.
Binance was later forced to stop the use of Naira transactions on its crypto exchange and a few days ago, a court in Abuja directed the firm to hand over trading data of its Nigerian users to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
On Wednesday, March 20, 2024, the federal government took Mr Gambaryan and Mr Anjarwalla to court to secure an order to keep them for additional days after the expiration of an original order on March 12, but the court adjourned the matter to Friday, April 5 for hearing.
Worried that her husband may have to remain in custody till the next hearing, which coincidentally is the fifth birthday of their son, Mrs Yuki Gambaryan appealed to the federal government to release her husband to rejoin them and continue his “good work” at Binance.
“Tigran was only supposed to be away from us for a very short trip and now over 3 weeks later we have no idea when we will see him again.
“I don’t know what to tell our two children who rush to the door every time they hear a car, eagerly hoping that their father has finally returned from a very long work trip.
“Tigran is globally recognized for his work in law enforcement and many of his peers would say that Tigran’s continuous efforts are what keep cryptocurrencies safe and clean.
“Please let him come home to continue this good work. The longer that our husbands are away from our families, the harder it is becoming for us to go about our daily lives.
“We are asking you from the bottom of our hearts and with the deepest respect that you please release them so that our families can be complete once again,” she pleaded.
On her part, Mrs Elahe Anjarwalla lamented that her husband is unable to witness the first birthday of their son today, Thursday, March 21, 2024, because of his incarceration in Abuja.
She has asked the British and Kenyan governments to intervene in the matter and secure the release of her husband.
“I am completely heartbroken. I was holding on to the hope that Nadeem would be home in time to celebrate our son’s first birthday together and I am devastated this won’t be happening.
“Nadeem has no authority to make high-level decisions at Binance and I am once again asking from the bottom of my heart that the Nigerian authorities please allow him and Tigran to return home whilst they continue their discussions with Binance.
“I am also calling on the British and Kenyan governments to do more to get Nadeem back home to us. Please, we just want this nightmare to end,” she said.
Business Post reports that the international passports of Mr Gambaryan and Mr Anjarwalla were seized by the Nigerian authorities when they arrived in the country on February 26, 2024.
Economy
BNB Price Reflects Changing Dynamics in the Digital Asset Market
Economy
NASD Unlisted Security Index Crosses 4,000-point Benchmark Again
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange achieved a milestone on Friday, April 24, 2026, after five securities on the platform helped with a 1.85 per cent growth.
Data showed that the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) again crossed the 4,000-point benchmark yesterday.
The index chalked up 73.64 points during the trading day to close at 4,052.59 points compared with the preceding session’s 3,978.95 points, while the market capitalisation added N5.38 billion to finish at N2.424 trillion versus Thursday’s closing value of N2.380 trillion.
The price gainers were led by Okitipupa Plc, which grew by N25.00 to sell at N305.00 per share compared with the previous price of N280.00 per share. Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc gained N6.92 to close at N76.26 per unit versus N69.34 per unit, Afriland Properties Plc appreciated by N1.00 to N17.00 per share from N18.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc improved by 55 Kobo to N99.55 per unit from N99.00 per unit, and Food Concepts Plc increased by 5 Kobo to N2.70 per share from N2.65 per share.
However, there was a price loser, MRS Oil, which dipped by N21.75 to N195.75 per unit from N217.50 per unit.
During the final session of the week, the value of securities jumped 75.2 per cent to N41.3 million from N23.6 million units, and the number of deals expanded by 62.9 per cent to 44 deals from 27 deals, while the volume of securities declined marginally by 0.9 per cent to 447,403 units from 451,522 units.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc was the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, trailed by Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units valued at N415.7 million, and Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc with 400 million units traded for N1.2 billion.
GNI was also the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 59.6 million units transacted for N4.0 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.8 million units exchanged for N1.9 billion.
Economy
Naira Slips to N1,358/$1 as FX Reserves, Policy Uncertainty Concerns
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was not a good day for the Nigerian Naira in the currency market on Friday, April 24, as its value depreciated against the major foreign currencies at the close of transactions.
In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), it lost N4.53 or 0.33 per cent against the United States Dollar yesterday to trade at N1,358.44/$1, in contrast to the N1,353.91/$1 it was exchanged on Thursday.
Equally, the domestic currency slipped against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the session by N8.14 to close at N1,834.02/£1, compared with the previous rate of N1,825.88/£1 and dropped N8.01 against the Euro to sell at N1,590.73/€1 versus N1,582.72/€1.
Also, the Naira depreciated against the US Dollar at the GTBank FX desk on Friday by N4 to quote at N1,370/$1 compared with the previous session’s N1,366/$1, and at the parallel market, it depleted by N5 to settle at N1,380/$1 versus the preceding day’s N1,375/$1.
Data published by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) indicated that NFEM interbank turnover surged to N43.562 million across 68 deals, up from N28.117 million the previous day.
Despite the CBN’s reassurance that the recent drop in external reserves is not worrisome, the market remains unsettled by persistent concerns over liquidity constraints, policy transparency, and weakening confidence in Nigeria’s FX market as gross reserves continue to decline to $48.4 billion.
The outlook for the Dollar appears supported by broader macro risks, including elevated oil prices tied to the tanker traffic disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and a continued US-Iran standoff over ceasefire negotiations.
A look at the digital currency market showed that investors are sitting on the edge as the US Dollar rebounded amid geopolitical and inflation risks despite continued inflows into US spot bitcoin Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).
Solana (SOL) rose by 1.2 per cent to sell $86.45, Cardano (ADA) appreciated by 1.1 per cent to $0.2517, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 0.9 per cent to $0.0989, Ripple (XRP) improved by 0.3 per cent to $1.43, Ethereum (ETH) soared by 0.2 per cent to $2,316.83, and Binance Coin (BNB) chalked up 0.1 per cent to sell for $637.44.
However, TRON (TRX) depreciated by 1.3 per cent to $0.3235, and Bitcoin (BTC) lost 0.2 per cent to close at $77,562.27, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.
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