The Abuja Division of the Federal High Court on Friday discharged Tigran Gambaryan, a 39-year-old American, and Nadeem Anjarwalla from the tax evasion charges brought against them and their cryptocurrency exchange company, Binance, by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).
The decision was prompted by Binance’s appointment of a Nigerian representative, Ayodele Omotilewa. Consequently, the FIRS filed a fresh charge, listing Binance as the sole defendant. The case involves allegations of Binance’s failure to collect and remit taxes, including Value Added Tax (VAT) and Company Income Tax (CIT) from its operations in Nigeria.
Following the appointment of Omotilewa, FIRS filed a new charge against Binance, shifting proceedings to July 12 to address the plea of the defendant and to discuss whether the Nigerian representative should be required to appear in the dock.
The legal proceedings against Binance began on March 22, 2024, when FIRS accused the cryptocurrency exchange platform and Gambaryan of tax evasion. On May 17, 2024, FIRS amended its lawsuit, claiming Binance failed to collect and remit various taxes, including VAT and CIT, as mandated by Section 40 of the FIRS Establishment Act 2007 (as amended).
Minister of Information Idris Mohammed highlighted that Binance had a turnover of over $20 billion in Nigeria in 2023 alone.
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During Friday’s resumed proceedings, counsel for Binance, Tonye Krukrubo SAN, informed Justice Emeka Nwite that Binance had forwarded the name of its official representative to FIRS and the court. FIRS counsel Moses Idehu confirmed this and sought permission to substitute the previous charges with the fresh amended one dated June 13, 2024. The new charge listed Binance as the sole defendant, excluding the names of Gambaryan and Nadeem.
Binance was accused of offering cryptocurrency trading services in Nigeria while failing to deduct the necessary VAT from its operations. Count four of the charge stated that Binance aided and abetted subscribers on its platform to unlawfully refuse or neglect to pay taxes, committing an offence under S.94 of the Companies Income Tax Act (as amended).
Prosecution counsel Idehu requested the court to direct the Binance representative to enter the dock and take his plea on behalf of the corporation. However, the defense argued that Nigerian law does not mandate a company representative to stand in the dock and take a plea, suggesting that a representative might not need to attend proceedings and could inform the court of the company’s position through a letter.
The defense also requested the court to discharge Gambaryan and Nadeem from the FIRS case, as an official representative had been appointed. FIRS confirmed that the matter now solely involves the federal government and Binance.
Justice Nwite directed that the parties file written addresses on whether the Nigerian representative should be in the dock. Subsequently, he struck out the charges filed on March 22, 2024, and May 17, 2024, and discharged Gambaryan and Nadeem from the case. The case was adjourned to July 12 for a plea, with the requirement for parties to file processes on the representative’s dock appearance.
