Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, has stated that Tigran Gambaryan, the head of the company's financial crime compliance team, should not be "held responsible while current discussions are ongoing between Binance and Nigerian government officials." This statement was shared in an April 3 post on the company's website.
"Tigran is a strict law enforcement professional and is not part of Binance management," said Binance. "While he has left official service of the U.S. government, he has remained fully committed to the role of law enforcement officer ever since, operating as a global advocate for good governance and transparent regulatory financial practices. Binance respectfully requests that Tigran Gambaryan, who has no decision-making power in the company, is not held responsible while current discussions are ongoing between Binance and Nigerian government officials."
According to the same post, Binance said Gambaryan, who is a U.S. citizen, is recognized "globally as someone fully dedicated to law enforcement." For a decade, Gambaryan served as a U.S. federal agent investigating cases related to "national security, terrorism financing, identity theft, distribution of child pornography, tax evasion, and bank secrecy act violations." During his tenure in the U.S. Treasury Department’s IRS Criminal Investigations unit, he collaborated with both the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and the United States Secret Service.
In 2021, Binance enlisted Gambaryan to assist in resolving historical compliance issues. The post further stated that "As the head of Binance’s Financial Crime Compliance (FCC) team, he has been a strong advocate for Binance to develop policies and build compliance capabilities that set new industry standards." In 2022 and 2023 alone, Gambaryan's team cooperated with law enforcement agencies worldwide to freeze and seize over $2.2 billion worth of assets. Over $285 million of these assets were frozen and seized through joint efforts with U.S. agencies such as the FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration.
The post also highlighted Gambaryan's work in Nigeria where his team responded to more than 600 requests from law enforcement agencies. The information provided by his team "helped tackle crimes ranging from scams and fraud to money laundering, blackmail, kidnapping, and extortion," leading to multiple asset freezes and seizures amounting to over USD 400,000. Additionally, Gambaryan's team led several training sessions for Nigerian law enforcement focused on combating cybercrime.
CoinDesk reported that Gambaryan was invited to Nigeria by government officials in February but was subsequently detained. He has since filed a lawsuit in the Federal High Court of Abuja, Nigeria's capital, alleging violations of his human rights. The Nigerian government has accused Binance of manipulating the country's currency exchange rate.
According to CoinMarketCap, Binance was launched in 2017. As of August 2022, it boasted a daily trading volume of approximately $76 billion, solidifying its position as the largest crypto exchange globally. Binance lists over 350 tokens and provides users with the ability to buy, sell, and store digital assets.