In a new episode of the Future of Money Podcast, hosted by Henri Arslanian, Tigran Gambaryan, a former Internal Revenue Service (IRS) criminal investigator turned Binance executive, shared his experiences in the cryptocurrency world, his role in investigating financial crimes, as well as the shocking series of events that unfolded during his time in detention in Nigeria last year, including allegations of bribery, corruption and abuse of power of Nigerian authorities.
This exclusive interview offers a rare glimpse into the complexities of the crypto industry, as well as unique insights into the controversial political landscape of Nigeria.
Early career and background
The interview starts with a discussion on Gambaryan’s early career in “crypto law enforcement”, where he played a pivotal role in tracing crypto transactions in some of the industry’s most significant cases, including the Silk Road investigation, and the seizure of 70,000 bitcoins from the shutdown of KickassTorrents.
“But back then, we didn’t really know how to trace cryptocurrency,” Gambaryan said.
“We really operationalized it and we built the investigative methodology using what I learned from [my role as a US federal agent] and from working the very first kind of cryptocurrency case where we traced bitcoins.”
In 2021, Gambaryan joined Binance, a major cryptocurrency exchange, to lead financial crime compliance. His role involved building out the company’s financial crime compliance capabilities, collaborating with global law enforcement agencies, and providing training on crypto-related crimes.
Binance and Nigeria
In Nigeria, Binance had a long-standing relationship with law enforcement, where they had provided training and assistance for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU).
“We worked with them for years,” Gambaryan said.
“They always struggled with getting law enforcement responses right. A lot of their law enforcement didn’t have even an email that they could use to obtain official information to get assistance from law enforcement.”
However, things took a dramatic turn during a meeting with Nigerian officials in 2023 during which Gambaryan and his team were allegedly asked to pay a bribe of US$150 million in cryptocurrency to resolve Binance’s regulatory issues.
“I, myself, being an investigator, understood that, when the government asked for a payment in cryptocurrency to settle existing issues, it’s not a normal way of handling things,” Gambaryan said.
“I knew I couldn’t entertain even that conversation. It was to the point where they said either pay this money or you won’t be able to leave the country.”
The situation escalated quickly, leading Tigran and his team to leave Nigeria in haste, fearing legal and personal repercussions for refusing to pay the bribe.
Detention
Despite warnings, Gambaryan and his team returned to Nigeria in early 2024 for a formal meeting with government officials. “Because of what happened obviously, we had to resolve any existing issues, but they would have to be resolved legally and it was not something that you pay a bribe for,” he explained.
However, what was supposed to be a routine meeting quickly turning into a tense situation. Upon arriving at the National Security Advisor’s office, Gambaryan and his team were ambushed by a different group of Nigerian investigators who accused Binance of damaging the Nigerian economy. They demanded access to all user data and required Binance to turn off peer-to-peer (P2P) service in Nigeria, requests the company refused.
“What they’re asking us to do is violate several international laws privacy laws but also what they’re trying to say is that we’re holding an American person in exchange for certain things which is by law considered a hostage negotiation,” Gambaryan said.
“They told us that we’re going to check out and then they’re going to take us to a different location. While this is happening, they lied and sent a letter to the US embassy and to the British High Council telling them that we’re their guests and we’re willingly participating in strategic talks.”
Gambaryan and his colleague Nadeem Anjarwalla, Africa’s regional manager, were then taken to a government “safe house”, where they were closely monitored by guards. Negotiations followed, leading Binance to eventually disable Nigeria’s P2P trading feature to secure their release. However, when it was revealed that Binance hadn’t provided all requested data, their release was rescinded.
Nadeem Anjarwalla’s escape
After nearly a month of detention, Gambaryan became increasingly anxious and isolated, while Anjarwalla struggled with panic attacks. Eventually, Anjarwalla managed to escape.
That morning Anjarwalla spent most of his time upstairs in his room, reading for Ramadan, while Gambaryan was downstairs on calls. After a while, Gambaryan grew concerned about Anjarwalla’s well-being, and decided to check on him.
“I knocked on the door, and open the door this time to see what’s going on because he had a panic attack earlier in a month so I thought maybe something happened to him,” Gambaryan recalled.
“I saw a large pile of blankets. I pushed down on the blankets, pulled them off, and saw a pillow stuffed in a t-shirt. My stomach sank. At this point, I knew things were going to change, I was alone.”
The Nigerian government later claimed Anjarwalla escaped during a mosque visit, but Gambaryan disputed this version of events. He suspected that, since no immigration alerts had been placed on Anjarwalla, he had simply taken an Uber to the airport and flown out of the country.
The aftermath
After Anjarwalla’s escape, chaos ensued. Guards panicked, generals arrived, and blame was passed between the EFCC and the military. The guards responsible were detained and interrogated, while Gambaryan was isolated, denied access to his phone, attorney, and embassy.
“I was completely in the dark at that point right, I was cut off from the rest of the world,” Gambaryan explained.
“I couldn’t talk to the embassy, to my attorneys, to my family. It was a very stressful situation, very uncertain. While this was happening, my human rights violation suit was filed.”
Eventually, Gambaryan was transferred to an EFCC detention facility where the conditions were worsened. For nearly a month, he was subjected to solitary confinement, malnutrition, and a lack of medical care. Meanwhile, the Nigerian authorities filed charges against him, Anjarwalla, and Binance, including money laundering, tax evasion, and operating without a license, all of which Gambaryan insists were baseless.
Gambaryan was then transferred to the Kuje prison, near the Nigerian capital of Abuja. He described the corruption and the severe mistreatment he endured, including being denied medical care, legal representation, and even basic mobility assistance.
“You’re in the worst possible prison,” Gambaryan said.
“You don’t have access to a shower and you’re bathing out of a bucket cold water, no working toilet. You’re in a metal drain bed in a 6×10 room full of scorpions and lizards, mosquitoes and cockroaches.”
Gambaryan also highlighted the broader context of his detention, including allegations that the Nigerian government falsely blamed Binance for the collapse of the national currency and used him as a scapegoat.
“The Nigerian government tried to blame the collapse of the Naira on Binance, which is hilarious,” Gambaryan said.
“When they depegged the currency from the US dollar, it was very expensive for them. When you float a currency that you are no longer artificially propping up, it’s going to get dramatically devalued. This is what happened.
“They wanted an open market, but I guess, they didn’t want it to be that open. I don’t really understand. And so they needed somebody to blame, because inflation is over 30% currently in Nigeria. They were not going to admit it was their policy that made this happen. They needed a scapegoat.”
The release
As Gambaryan’s detention stretched on, pressure mounted from his former colleagues, the crypto community and the US government, intensified diplomatic efforts to secure his release.
A key turning point was a call with Jake Sullivan, the National Security Advisor to President Biden, that mobilized the White House and State Department.
“The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), from day one, were working on getting me released,” Gambaryan recalled.
“Eventually, they mobilized FBI director Christopher Wray who had a meeting with Nigerian President Bola Tinubu to demand for my release. The White House eventually mobilized Jake Sullivan.”
Gambaryan first sensed movement about a month before his release but wasn’t sure how long it would take. He believes the Nigerian government’s own missteps helped accelerate the process.
“The Nigerian government really shot themselves in the foot,” Gambaryan said.
“The thing that mobilized some folks in the government was when they cut off my access to attorneys. There are certain things that you don’t do; completely cutting off somebody’s email. You’re not even pretending to follow due process. You’re violating your own constitution in the process of holding somebody hostage.”
For two months, Gambaryan was denied access to his attorneys, and his health deteriorated drastically.
“I wasn’t able to walk, I was in a wheelchair. I had malaria and then I almost died from pneumonia,” he recalled.
“They didn’t allow me to get healthcare. They took several steps to even threaten a Turkish hospital not to admit me.
“Jake Sullivan was very upset afterwards, from my understanding, which mobilized the White House and State Department, and led the House to pass a resolution holding Nigeria responsible, and eventually working their way towards sanctioning Nigeria. That’s where the US government was able to force their hands to take a deal.”
Ultimately, Nigeria struck an agreement with the US government, which included turning over US$50 million forfeited from a corrupt Nigerian politician in exchange for his release.
After eight months of detention, Gambaryan was released in October 2024 following the government’s decision to drop money laundering charges against him, allowing Gambaryan to get medical treatment abroad. The EFCC said it would continue the money laundering case against Binance without Gambaryan.
A lawsuit was filed in February 2025 by the Nigerian government, seeking to compel Binance to pay US$79.5 billion for economic losses it said were caused by its operations in the country and US$2 billion in back taxes.
Binance ceased all Nigerian operations in March 2024.
Watch Tigran Gambaryan’s full interview with Henri Arslanian:
Featured image credit: edited from freepik
