SEC Declares Binance Operations in Nigeria Illegal

Festus Akanbi

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has declared the operation of Binance Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of Binance, as illegal in the country.
In a statement published on its website on Friday, SEC said the cryptocurrency platform has been actively promoting its web and mobile-enabled platforms to Nigerians. According to the statement, the company is neither subject to its regulations nor registered.

“The attention of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the Commission) has been drawn to the website operated by Binance Nigeria Limited, soliciting the Nigerian public to trade crypto assets on its various web and mobile-enabled platforms.

“Binance Nigeria Limited is neither registered nor regulated by the Commission and its operations in Nigeria are therefore illegal. Any member of the investing public dealing with the entity is doing so at his/her own risk,” the statement said.

Warning Nigerians to be wary of crypto-assets and related financial products and services that are not registered in the country, SEC stated, “As the regulator with the statutory mandate of investor protection, the Commission urges Nigerians to be wary of investing in crypto-assets and related financial products and services if the service provider/its platform is not registered or regulated by the Commission. Nigerian investors are hereby warned that investing in crypto-assets is extremely risky and may result in a total loss of their investment.

“By this circular, Binance Nigeria Limited is hereby directed to immediately stop soliciting Nigerian investors in any form whatsoever.”
The capital market regulator therefore pledged to continue to provide updates on further regulatory actions concerning the activities of Binance Nigeria Limited, and other similar platforms and shall work with other regulators in Nigeria to provide further guidance on this matter.

Binance, the world’s leading blockchain ecosystem, with a product suite that includes the largest digital asset exchange, is facing similar issues of a crackdown from authorities in the United States — the latest being lawsuits filed by the country’s SEC.