President Bola Tinubu’s government justified its clampdown on Binance, accusing the cryptocurrency platform of sabotaging and destroying Nigeria’s economy. Bayo Onanuga, a media aide to the President, stated, “Look at what Binance is doing to our economy. That’s why the government moved against Binance.” He further emphasized that some individuals manipulate the exchange rate, undermining the Central Bank of Nigeria’s role.
The Nigerian government detained two executives of Binance, confiscating their passports, after being informed that Binance could harm Nigeria’s economy if not addressed. The Central Bank of Nigeria governor revealed that over $26 billion flowed through Binance in the past year.
In response to these actions, Binance collaborated with the Nigerian government to block dollar-naira trading and disabled its peer-to-peer function for Nigerian users.
This move raised concerns about Nigerians’ ability to continue trading on the platform. Additionally, the Nigerian currency was unavailable on Binance.