Tigran Gambaryan, a former U.S. federal agent and Binance’s Head of Financial Crime Compliance, has left the crypto exchange following a harrowing 10-month ordeal in Nigeria that highlighted the growing friction between African governments and foreign tech companies.
In a farewell statement posted Friday, Gambaryan confirmed his departure from Binance, marking the close of a turbulent chapter that began with his high-profile detention by Nigerian authorities in early 2024.
“Today is my last day at Binance, marking the end of a chapter I’m deeply proud of,” he wrote in a statement.
Gambaryan, who built Binance’s global investigations team from scratch, said he now plans to shift focus to new roles that bridge digital assets, enforcement, and compliance — potentially back in public service.
His exit comes amid a renewed public clash with Nigerian lawmakers, whom he accused of demanding a $150m bribe in cryptocurrency during a covert meeting earlier this year. The accusation adds a fresh layer to the diplomatic and regulatory standoff that has gripped Africa’s largest economy and the world’s biggest crypto exchange for over a year.
Gambaryan’s detention alongside colleague Nadeem Anjarwalla in February 2024 sparked diplomatic tensions between Nigeria and the U.S. Anjarwalla, a British-Kenyan dual national, escaped custody in March; Gambaryan remained imprisoned until October 2024, when he was released following extensive U.S. diplomatic efforts.
The arrests followed months of regulatory pressure. In February, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Olayemi Cardoso accused Binance of facilitating $26 billion in untraceable financial flows, a figure Gambaryan now disputes.
“The $26bn figure they kept pushing publicly as some mystery money escaping Nigeria is complete nonsense,” he said in his post. “This was simply cumulative trade data for Nigerians using the platform.”
According to Gambaryan, Binance was scapegoated to deflect from the naira’s devaluation, which he attributes to monetary reforms initiated under President Bola Tinubu.
“They all knew that the naira’s devaluation was a direct result of Tinubu’s monetary policy, which depegged the naira from the dollar… Instead of acknowledging this, they used Binance as a convenient villain.”
Binance officially exited the Nigerian market in March 2024 after sustained regulatory crackdowns and accusations that the platform enabled illicit financial flows. The Nigerian government has taken an increasingly hardline stance on crypto, citing concerns over national security and capital flight.
The crackdown on Binance coincided with broader moves against global tech firms. In 2023, Nigeria fined Meta $220 million over alleged data privacy violations, and other multinationals have reported rising uncertainty in dealing with Nigerian regulators.
For Nigeria’s crypto community, the impact has been immediate. Peer-to-peer trading — the lifeblood of digital finance in the country — has become more restricted. Crypto enthusiasts and startups are seeking offshore alternatives or going underground to avoid scrutiny.
During his four-year tenure, Gambaryan led Binance’s transformation from a crypto startup with minimal compliance infrastructure to a firm that responded to more than 57,000 law enforcement requests annually. His team, made up of over 100 former prosecutors, federal agents, and analysts, collaborated with global agencies on cases ranging from terrorism financing to cybercrime.
Notably, Gambaryan cited the firm’s cooperation with Nigeria’s EFCC in recovering over $400,000 in illicit funds and training dozens of their agents — a detail that adds complexity to his later detention by Nigerian authorities.
What’s Next for Gambaryan — and Nigeria?
With his departure from Binance, Gambaryan hinted at a return to public service or a role in a mission-driven private institution.
“There’s a growing need for trusted, experienced operators — people who understand how to translate between technology, enforcement, and compliance. That’s where I intend to continue making a difference,” he wrote.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s posture toward foreign tech companies remains under scrutiny. Critics argue that while its regulators have grown more assertive, enforcement efforts often lack transparency and due process.
Whether Nigerian lawmakers respond to Gambaryan’s bribery allegations or not, his revelations have reignited global scrutiny of Nigeria’s regulatory environment — and raised further questions about how African governments will navigate their increasingly complex relationship with digital finance.