Despite prison stint, Canada's richest man's fortune surged by $20 billion in months

CRIMINAL CRYPTO CAPITALI$M

Irish Mae Silvestre

Nov 9 2024,


@cz_binance/X

Despite a four-month prison term, Canada’s richest man continues to get richer, adding several billion dollars to his net worth in less than a year.

In its latest list of the top 10 richest Canadians, Maclean’s magazine estimates that Changpeng Zhao, co-founder of cryptocurrency exchange Binance, is currently the second richest person in the country.

The Thomson family, who controls the Thomson Reuters Corporation, tops the list with a net worth of $98.15 billion.
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But at the rate he’s going, Zhao could soon close that gap.


Changpeng Zhao/X

Zhao is currently worth $61.02 billion — a $20.72 billion jump in just a few months since the Bloomberg Billionaire Index reported that Zhao had a net worth of $40.3 billion as of May 6. At the time, his net worth made him the wealthiest crypto entrepreneur, the richest Canadian on the list, and the 34th richest person in the world.

Born in Jiangsu, China, Zhao (also known as CZ) moved with his family to Vancouver in the late 1980s after his dad got a job at the University of British Columbia. According to Bloomberg, he completed a computer science degree at McGill University in Montreal, and his interest in cryptocurrency was sparked after a discussion at a poker game in 2013. Zhao founded Binance in 2017, and by 2018, it was the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world.

Koshiro K/Shutterstock

But it hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing for the multibillionaire.

In 2023, Zhao pled guilty to failing to implement anti-money laundering controls at Binance. He spent four months in prison and was released from custody on September 27. Not only has he resigned as CEO, but Binance was fined US$4.3 billion.

Maclean’s list includes grocers, tech giants, developers, and investors.

“As a group, their wealth has ballooned over the last two decades: the combined net worth of the ten richest Canadians is now $261 billion, compared to $60 billion in 2004,” states the report


With files from Isabelle Docto

Ontario family worth over $98 billion just keeps getting richer


An Ontario family behind a vast media empire saw its fortune grow by $14.25 billion since the start of 2024, cementing the Thomson family's position as Canada's wealthiest.

Maclean's revealed its list of Canada's Richest People on Thursday, with the 2024 list, produced in partnership with Canadian Business, offering "a fresh look at the uber-wealthy in this country."

And they sure aren't exaggerating about said wealth, as Canada's rich just keep getting richer.

"The bulk of Canada's money is still held by a few at the top. On average, a billionaire will earn a typical Canadian's yearly salary by January 2. What has changed is where that affluence lives," reads the report.

It's not just your usual suspects of business tycoons on this year's list, as Maclean's notes the growing presence of e-commerce giants, crypto CEOs and other new money big-wigs among the country's wealthiest.


But it was still traditional "old money" at the top of this year's list.

The Thomson family, at the helm of the globe-spanning Thomson-Reuters media empire, secured the top position on this year's ranking with a staggering value of $98.15 billion.

This should come as little surprise to anyone who has been tracking the immensely wealthy family's impressive financial gains in recent years, which have only been bolstered by gargantuan earnings in 2024.

In addition to its controlling stake in Thomson Reuters — a company that has seen immense share growth in the last five years — the Thomson family's holding company, Woodbridge, owns major publications like The Globe and Mail.

Woodbridge also holds a minority interest in the NHL's Montreal Canadiens, as well as BCE Inc., which owns Bell Canada. If a stake in one NHL team wasn't enough for Canada's richest family, David Thomson, the reclusive family patriarch, is also a co-owner of the Winnipeg Jets.

Back in January 2024, the Thomson family empire was worth $60.4 billion USD ($83.9 billion in Canuck Bucks). That figure had increased to $67.8 billion by April, and by May, the Thomson empire's riches had grown even more to $71 billion, further solidifying the family's position as the richest in Canada.

With a current net worth of $98.15 billion CAD ($70.6 billion USD) as of November, the Thomson family has seen its fortune swell by over $10 billion USD/$14 billion CAD in 2024 alone.

But it took a long time for them to accumulate such astronomical riches.

David Thomson, 3rd Baron Thomson of Fleet (okay, Mr. Fancy, we get it), is the third generation at the head of this empire and saw the family business expand with the acquisition of global news service Reuters for $17 billion USD.

According to Maclean's, David follows in the footsteps of his late father as "an avid art collector," and is the owner of several works from legendary artist Pablo Picasso, among other culturally significant painters.

But even Canada's richest family can only adorn so much wall space, and the Thomson family has donated roughly 450 works to the Art Gallery of Ontario from artists like the Group of Seven, Tom Thomson, Cornelius Krieghoff and Peter Paul Rubens

The Maclean's list also includes other notable Canadians like grocery magnate Galen Weston Jr., who has accumulated a net worth in excess of $18 billion as of 2024.

CRIMINAL CAPITALI$MTD Bank Fined a Record $3 Billion for Cartel Money Laundering

CRIMINAL CAPITALI$M
TD Bank Fined a Record $3 Billion for Cartel Money Laundering

By Socalj 10/10/2024 

"Socalj" for Borderland Beat

From a CNN Article

TD Bank will pay $3 billion to settle charges that it failed to properly monitor money laundering by drug cartels, regulators announced Thursday.

The fine includes a $1.3 billion penalty that will be paid to the US Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, a record fine for a bank. TD also intends to pay $1.8 billion to the US Justice Department and plead guilty to resolve the US government’s investigation that the bank violated of the Bank Secrecy Act and allowed money laundering.

The US Department of Justice said in a statement that TD Bank had “long-term, pervasive, and systemic deficiencies” in its procedures of monitoring transactions.

“By making its services convenient for criminals, it became one,” said Attorney General Merrick Garland, at a press conference Thursday.

More than 90% of transactions went unmonitored between January 2018 to April 2024, which “enabled three money laundering networks to collectively transfer more than $670 million through TD Bank accounts,” according to a legal filing.

“I want to be clear, these systemic failures did not just create hypothetical vulnerabilities, but they resulted in actual, material harm to American citizens and communities,” Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said in a statement. “Time and again, unlike its peers, TD Bank prioritized growth and profit over complying with the law. The bank enabled drug trafficking.”

In one instance, TD Bank employees collected more than $57,000 worth of gift cards to process more than $470 million in cash deposits from a money laundering network to “ensure employees would continue to process their transactions” and not declare them in required reports, the DoJ said.

In a related statement, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), a US agency that regulates banks, said TD processed hundreds of millions of dollars of transactions the clearly indicated highly suspicious activity.

“This is a difficult chapter in our bank’s history,” TD Bank CEO Bharat Masrani in a statement. “These failures took place on my watch as CEO and I apologize to all our stakeholders.”

“We have taken full responsibility for the failures of our US [anti-money laundering] program and are making the investments, changes and enhancements required to deliver on our commitments,” Masrani added.

TD is ramping up its anti-money laundering surveillance efforts, including the hiring of more than 700 new specialists with “experience and qualifications in money laundering prevention, financial crimes, and AML remediation,” as well deploying new processes to “better prevent, detect and measure financial crime risk,” the bank said.

The Canadian bank will be subject to four years of monitoring by FinCEN to observe the lender more closely and ensure it is following the agreement. The US Federal Reserve also fined TD Bank and will force the company to relocate to the United States its anti-money laundering compliance office.

And, in a significant part of the agreement, the OCC is restricting TD Bank’s growth in the United States. Although extraordinary, it is not unprecedented for a bank to be monitored and its growth restricted by the US government. Wells Fargo was saddled with similar restrictions on growth and a hefty fine for “widespread consumer abuses” in 2018 and has yet to convince regulators to remove that asset cap. Wells Fargo previously admitted that its workers responded to wildly unrealistic sales goals by creating as many as 3.5 million fake accounts.

The tough penalties from regulators on Thursday caught Wall Street off guard. TD Bank’s (TD) US-listed shares slumped 6% as investors brace for higher legal expenses and weaker growth.

TD ensured that it has adequate liquidity to pay the fine and continue operations. In a call with analysts, the bank said it expects a one-time charge of $1.5 billion after taxes and will reduce 10% of its assets to address the massive fine.

“We believe that the market was becoming increasingly comfortable with the thought that there would not be any growth restrictions placed on TD,” John Aiken, analyst at Jefferies, wrote in a note to clients on Thursday. “TD will need to find a new avenue for growth from its traditional reliance on US retail banking.”

TD Bank Money Laundering

First, over the course of a three-year period, a person who TD Bank employees knew as David moved over $470 million in illicit funds through TD Bank branches in the United States.

David has separately pled guilty to laundering drug proceeds through the bank.

David had attempted to launder money through numerous financial institutions. But he found that TD Bank had the most permissive policies and procedures and chose to launder most of his funds there.

He also bribed TD Bank employees with more than $57,000 in gift cards in furtherance of his scheme.

David’s illegal conduct was obvious, to say the least. On more than one occasion, he deposited more than $1 million in cash in a single day. He then immediately moved the funds out of the bank using official bank checks and wire transfers.

TD Bank employees at many levels understood and acknowledged the likely illegality of David’s activity.

In August 2020, one TD Bank store manager emailed another store manager and remarked, “You guys really need to shut this down LOL.”

In late 2020, another store manager implored his supervisors — several TD Bank regional managers — to act, noting that “[i]t is getting out of hand and my tellers are at the point that they don’t feel comfortable handling these transactions.”

In February 2021, one TD Bank store employee saw that David’s network had purchased more than $1 million in official bank checks with cash in a single day. The employee asked: “How is that not money laundering.” A back-office employee responded, “oh it 100% is.”

In a second, separate money laundering scheme, five TD Bank employees conspired with criminal organizations to open and maintain accounts at the bank that were used to launder $39 million to Colombia, including drug proceeds.

That money laundering organization reused the same Venezuelan passports to open multiple accounts at TD Bank. It sometimes used the same passport to obtain multiple debit cards for a single account.

Despite significant internal red flags, the bank did not identify that its own employees were conspiring to launder tens of millions of dollars to Colombia, until law enforcement arrested one of them.

In yet a third scheme, outlined in today’s charges, a money laundering network maintained accounts at TD Bank for at least five shell companies. It used those accounts to move over $100 million in illicit funds through the bank.

Even though retail employees flagged suspicious activity connected to those accounts, the bank did not file a suspicious activity report until law enforcement alerted the bank to the money laundering network’s activity. By that time, the accounts had been open for over 13 months and had been used to transfer nearly $120 million.

On multiple occasions, bank employees openly joked about the bank’s enabling of criminal activity.

In one instance a compliance employee asked a manager what “the bad guys” thought about the bank. The manager replied: “Lol. Easy target.”

Other employees consistently joked on the bank’s instant messaging platform about the bank’s motto, “America’s Most Convenient Bank.” They linked it to the bank’s approach to combating money laundering.

For example, a compliance employee asked a colleague why “all the really awful ones bank here lol.”

The colleague replied: “because … we are convenient.”

There is nothing wrong with a bank that tries to make its services convenient for its honest customers.

But there is something terribly wrong with a bank that knowingly makes its services convenient for criminals.

The Bank Secrecy Act requires financial institutions like TD Bank to establish and maintain compliance programs that guard against money laundering.

But TD Bank chose profits over compliance, in order to keep its costs down.

That decision is now costing the bank billions of dollars in criminal and civil penalties.

Less than a year ago, the Justice Department secured felony guilty pleas from Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, and from its founder and CEO. We also obtained one of the largest corporate penalties in U.S. history.

Because of the seriousness of the accusations, some critics, including Democratic Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, said the penalties didn’t go far enough.

“Big banks treat government fines as the cost of doing business,” Warren said in a statement. “This settlement lets bad bank executives off the hook for allowing TD Bank to be used as a criminal slush fund. The Department of Justice and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency need to do better in enforcing our anti-money laundering laws.”

Last year, TD Bank paid $1.2 billion to settle a lawsuit alleging its involvement in an infamous $7 billion Ponzi scheme orchestrated by disgraced financier Allen Stanford more than a decade ago. The money was used to pay back victims of the scheme but the bank denied any wrongdoing.

Sources WSJ, CNN, DOJ

Binance slammed for seizing Palestinian crypto at Israel's request

Binance, the largest cryptocurrency exchange, is facing backlash over reportedly seizing crypto from all Palestinians, as per request from Israel.

The New Arab Staff
28 August, 2024


Binance has denied blocking cryptocurrency from all Palestinians [GETTY]

One of the largest cryptocurrency exchange companies is facing backlash for allegedly seizing crypto from Palestinians at the request of the Israeli army.

Ray Youssef, co-founder of Paxful, a peer-to-peer crypto platform and CEO at Noones, said on X that Binance had seized all funds from all Palestinians.

"Binance has seized all funds from all Palestinians as per the request of the IDF. They refuse to return the funds. All appeals denied," Youssef wrote.

"I have received this from several sources. ALL Palestinians are affected and judging by the way things are going all Lebanese and Syrians will get the same treatment. Not your keys, not your coins," Youssef added.

The CEO shared a letter from his sources at Binance, referring to a letter signed in November 2023 by Paul Landes, the head of Israel's National Bureau for Counter Terror Financing, in response to Palestinian users who appealed to restore their funds.


The letter, written in Hebrew, says according to anti-terrorism laws, the Minister of Defence is allowed to order a "temporary seizure of property of a declared terrorist organisation, as well as seizure of property which was used to commit a crime".

The funds were supposedly transferred by the Dubai Exchange Company in the Gaza Strip, which is a declared "terrorist organisation", according to the letter.

Youssef also shared a video from a Palestinian supposedly confirming that "Israel is putting massive pressure on Binance and all other exchanges to blanket seize the funds of ALL Palestinians".

The company has since received backlash, with many users online calling for a boycott.

"Time to boycott @binance They are working with the #IsraeliApartheid to seize and freeze our brothers and sisters assets based on Israeli demands, Crypto is meant to be decentralised not controlled by the government. I deleted my account, now it's your time guys," one user wrote on X.

"TAKE YOUR FUNDS OUT OF BINANCE."

 They support Genocide and are bending over to Israel to freeze assets in Palestine. imagine what they can do with your funds," another wrote.

"Shame on @binance for stealing people's money," said another.

Binance has denied blocking cryptocurrency from all Palestinians, telling Cointelegraph, "Only a small number of user accounts, linked to illicit funds, were blocked from transacting".

The spokesperson also said the company complies with "internationally accepted sanctions legislation, just like any other financial institution".

Data from software company Similarweb cited by Cointelegraph found that Palestine was a "minor market" for Binance, with the traffic share amounting to roughly 0.05 percent of Binance's visits over the past year.

However, Palestine's traffic surged to over 80 percent since August 2023.

With bank infrastructure in ruins, Gaza gets a crypto lifeline

Azraa Muthy

Digital gold rush: A high-stakes gamble in a fragile economy

Pakistanis are turning to cryptocurrencies as both a lifeline and a gamble, betting on digital fortunes amid soaring market highs and devastating lows.

Fatima S Attarwala 

Published August 27, 2024 

“I used to walk an hour to work every day because I couldn’t afford any form of transportation,” said Ashraf*, who earns around minimum income while trading in cryptocurrencies on the side. Showing photos of his brand new Kia Sportage worth Rs9 million ($32,000), Ashraf proudly talks about his new three-story home and the state-of-the-art solar system he has installed, all courtesy of his investments in cryptocurrency. He started investing when Bitcoin was a mere $700 with a wallet of just $1.

Ashraf’s story is just one example of how many Pakistanis, driven by the need for wealth preservation in a volatile economy, are turning to cryptocurrencies. Given that crypto trading is not legal in Pakistan, most of the activity takes place on peer-to-peer exchanges, such as Binance, with information being shared in groups on less-widely used apps such as Telegram. With the uncertainty surrounding the recent arrest of Telegram’s co-founder and CEO Pavel Durov, the app Signal is being touted as a strongly encrypted alternative.

In Pakistan, as austerity measures continue pinching the pockets of the masses, crypto is looking like a good bet for many trying to hold onto their money, explains Chainalysis’s 2023 Geography of Cryptocurrency Report.

A 2020-21 report from the Federation of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry estimated that Pakistan held around $20 billion of cryptocurrencies, a rise of 711 per cent. To put it in context, the State Bank of Pakistan held $14.7bn in liquid foreign reserves as of August 16. Estimates of crypto holdings indicate its appetite for investors in Pakistan.

And it is not just Pakistan. Global developments also reflect the growing influence of crypto, with significant investments in political campaigns, particularly in the US. In late 2021, as expectations of rising interest rates in the US grew, investors began shifting funds from riskier assets like stocks and cryptocurrencies towards interest-earning investments. The decline in cryptocurrencies continued until 2022 when Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock —the world’s largest investment manager with around $10 trillion in assets under management — endorsed cryptocurrency.

Recently, Trump, who was previously dismissive of cryptocurrencies, has raised over $4 million in crypto assets. As the US elections approach, pro-crypto groups are lobbying intensively. According to Bloomberg, Coinbase, the largest US cryptocurrency exchange, has contributed another $25 million to the Fairshake SuperPAC, a political action committee focused on crypto. Meanwhile, another crypto firm Ripple has also donated $25 million to Fairshake. Lately, crypto has been see-sawing around the $60,000 mark, while gold surged to record highs and stocks stumbled amid global market turmoil before making a recovery.

The risk is real, too

Bitcoin’s recent plunge alongside the global equity market meltdown has made its correlation with stocks increasingly evident, challenging its reputation as a safe-haven asset. The volatility of cryptocurrencies has led to the destruction of wealth for many.

Take Ashraf, for example. “My four friends and I lost Rs10.5 million cumulatively when the market crashed,” he said. “But I have recovered over 80pc of it once the market started reviving; it was a wait-and-see game,” he added while surreptitiously checking his Binance account every minute.

Urging everyone to invest, he explained the secret to success, at least his so far: “Buy hundreds of thousands of crypto coins before they are launched when they are worth less than one-hundredth of a cent.” It’s a minuscule investment, and if the currency’s value rises close to a cent, it can deliver higher dividends than investing in the Pakistan Stock Exchange, which is trading at new highs, he asserted. Of course, it comes with risks attached.

The profile of an investor

Ashraf is among the many small traders in Pakistan, a country among the top 10 in Chainalysis’s Global Crypto Adoption Index in 2023.

“As Bitcoin recovers, cryptocurrency adoption in Pakistan is on the rise, driven by tech savvy youth and remittance inflows from overseas Pakistanis. Despite the Pakistan Stock Exchange reaching new heights, it hasn’t deterred crypto investment; instead, the positive market sentiment encourages diversified portfolios,” said Farrukh Kiani, Country Marketing Manager of KuCoin Exchange.

According to a KuCoin Pakistan report published in June 2023, 17pc of internet users aged 18-60 identified themselves as crypto investors. This group includes users who have owned or currently own crypto assets in the past six months.

However, crypto investors are not a homogenous bunch, said Zeeshan Ahmed, former country general manager at Rain Financial, a Gulf-based cryptocurrency trading platform. He explained that there are subsets of crypto investors. Those investing in the PSX, as well as crypto, are generally wealthy to begin with.

“The ones with excess wealth/cash are dividing it in a portfolio of investments to make more money or protect it from eroding in value. A large base in this subset has a substantial amount saved in USDT,” he said. Tether, commonly known as USDT, is a stablecoin used as a medium of exchange when purchasing cryptocurrencies. “They are not investors or traders but are saving in USDT,” he explained, given the dollar shortage in Pakistan.

Opportunities with caution

Crypto adoption can benefit the economy by attracting foreign investments and enhancing financial inclusion, especially in remittances. Establishing robust regulations and infrastructure development is crucial to ensure safe and sustainable growth of this sector while also protecting investors and the broader economy, said Kiani.

However, influencers and crypto experts like Waqar Zaka temper enthusiasm with caution. Sharing a screenshot of a partner transaction query of cryptocurrency exchange Bitget, Zaka showed the balance of $1.5bn in June that has been invested in cryptocurrencies through Bitget by his followers alone, most of whom hail from Pakistan. This does not include investments made by people on other popular exchanges such as Binance, he said, explaining the scale of investment in cryptocurrencies in Pakistan.

An average Pakistani crypto investor tends to engage in future leveraged trading rather than simply buying and holding assets, said Zaka. In the crypto world, leveraged trading involves using borrowed funds to increase potential profits, but it also carries high risks, as even small price movements can lead to significant losses against the borrowed amount. In India, on the other hand, more people are involved in decentralised finance, with a growing trend of holding Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies for the long term.

Crypto exchanges typically do not have a regulatory license to offer leverage services. In a hypothetical example, let’s imagine Ali is a crypto investor with $100. A crypto platform offers him 100x leverage, which means that it allows him to invest up to $10,000 using borrowed funds. If the market moves significantly against the position, Ali could lose more than his initial investment due to the borrowed funds. An unlicensed crypto exchange may not have mechanisms such as auto-liquidation to close positions before losses exceed the investor’s account balance to prevent negative balances. In the best-case scenario, he earns $10,000.

“About 90pc of the people lose money through leveraged trading because they don’t research enough. When meme coins crash, there is little chance that they will rise back up,” he said.

The need for research

Ahmed was wary about the inspirational value of success stories like Ashraf’s. “It’s a superhero story. Stories like these inspire 50,000 other guys, but will they be successful? Maybe, maybe not. It can’t be used as a benchmark. For every guy who has bought a Kia Sportage, 10,000 others have lost all their wealth.”

He advises a cautious approach to crypto investment: “The amount you spend on eating out in a month is how much you should spend on crypto in a month and keep it in a cold wallet somewhere safe. In 10 or 15 years, it might help pay for your kid’s college, or it might mean nothing; such is its volatility.”

Emphasising the need to do research, Zaka strongly discourages investment in meme coins, comparing it to traditional gambling. Demand for meme coins is driven by social media hype and speculation, and they witness extreme price volatility.

Explaining his method of investment, Zaka said to follow America’s consumer price index data (CPI). The best way to grasp the investment mechanics and volatility of the crypto market is by understanding the workings of global markets, including the effects of CPI and jobs report data. These indicators influence inflation and interest rates, which, in turn, have a significant impact on cryptocurrencies. “Ultimately, crypto profits need to be realised through tangible assets or consumption,” he advised.

The dark side

In Pakistan, much of the USDT being traded comes from the black market. If USDT purchased by a legitimate crypto investor was ever involved in terror financing, it could lead to serious trouble with the Federal Investigation Agency. Zaka strongly advises USDT buyers to always request the wallet address and verify it online to ensure it hasn’t been blacklisted, and to practice strict digital hygiene. In particular, USDT bought below market price is prone to suspicion.

Many Pakistanis turn to Telegram for information, but it’s a hotbed for scammers promising sky-high returns. “The Double Shah that once existed is now available everywhere online,” he said, referring to the con artist who achieved notoriety through Ponzi schemes.

As cryptocurrency continues gaining traction in Pakistan, it’s evident that the promise of wealth comes hand in hand with significant risks. For those looking to ride the crypto wave, informed decisions and a healthy dose of caution are your best allies.

*Name changed for anonymity

Header image: This image is taken from Shutterstock.

Diplomatic row looms as US lawmakers pressure Biden to secure Binance executive’s release in Nigeria

on June 5, 2024
By Ripples Nigeria



United States lawmakers are urging President Joe Biden and top officials to take immediate action to secure the release of Tigran Gambaryan, a Binance executive and former federal agent who they believe has been unlawfully detained in Nigeria for over three months.

In a strongly worded letter dated June 4, 2024, these policymakers addressed President Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger D. Carstens. Several House members, including Chairman Rep. Michael McCaul of the House Foreign GOP, expressing grave concerns about the Binance executive’s health and treatment in Nigerian custody.

Gambaryan, a U.S. citizen and distinguished former IRS agent, has been detained since February 26. At the time, he traveled to Nigeria for high-level meetings on Binance’s compliance issues.

Initially professional, the meetings turned hostile, leading to Gambaryan’s detention by Nigerian authorities. “The Government of Nigeria took Mr. Gambaryan hostage,” the lawmakers wrote.

Moreover, they detailed how Binance’s Gambaryan was forcibly taken to a government-owned house and held without communication for five days.

In addition, despite a court order on March 12 stating that the remand order had not been extended, Gambaryan’s detention continued unlawfully until new charges were filed. The action was taken allegedly in lieu of pursuing legal action against Binance. Hence, the letter emphasizes that Gambaryan “is being tried in lieu of pursuing legal action against his employer.”

READ ALSO: Panic as Binance executive, Gambaryan slumps in court

Additionally, the conditions of Gambaryan’s detention have been severe. He is held in Kuje Prison, notorious for its harsh conditions, and has faced obstacles in meeting with his legal team without government supervision. More alarmingly, his health has deteriorated significantly.

“He tested positive for malaria, and when he requested hospital treatment, the prison officials declined his request,” the letter states.

It would be recalled that Binance’s Gambaryan collapsed in court on May 23, prompting a judge to order his transfer to a private hospital. However, adequate healthcare has not been provided as of June 4.

The lawmakers assert that Gambaryan’s detention meets the criteria for being “wrongfully detained by a foreign government,” as defined in the Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act. They urgently request that his case be transferred to the Office of the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs. In addition, they emphasized the need for swift action to ensure the Binance exec’s safety.

“Mr. Gambaryan’s health and well-being are in danger, and we fear for his life. Immediate action is essential to ensure his safety and preserve his life,” the letter urges. However, despite the efforts by the US, Nigeria has refused to comply, which could worsen the situation.

By: Babajide Okeowo

ENTRAPMENT

U.S. Lawmakers Urge Biden to Rescue 'Hostage' Binance Exec From Detention in Nigeria

House members urged "immediate action" in the case of Binance exec Tigran Gambaryan, arguing that his "health and well-being are in danger."

By Stephen Graves

Jun 5, 2024

Binance head of financial crime compliance Tigran Gambaryan. Image: Binance

U.S. lawmakers have called on President Joe Biden to take up the case of an American Binance executive detained in Nigeria.

In a letter sent to the White House, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger D. Carstens, House members including Michael McCaul (R-Texas), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, urged "immediate action" in the case of Tigran Gambaryan, arguing that his "health and well-being are in danger."

Gambaryan, a U.S. citizen who heads up Binance's financial compliance unit, has been detained in Nigeria since February and faces charges of money laundering to the tune of $35 million.

In the letter, the U.S. House members describe the charges leveled against Gambaryan as "baseless," arguing that they constitute a "coercion tactic by the Nigerian government to extort his employer." Following the charges, Gambaryan should be considered a "U.S. Citizen wrongfully detained by a foreign government,” under the terms of the Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act.A

Gambaryan has been held in the "notorious Kuje Prison, known for its harsh conditions," and denied access to his legal team without the presence of Nigerian government officials and armed guards, the letter notes. In a "deeply disturbing" recent development, the letter notes that Gambaryan collapsed in court and was subsequently hospitalized, but that the prison has failed to fully comply with the court order and that he has not received adequate health care.

The letter, signed by 16 members of Congress, urges that Gambaryan's case be transferred to the Office of the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs, arguing that, "Immediate action is essential to ensure his safety and preserve his life."

Gambaryan and his colleague Nadeem Anjarwalla were detained in February after traveling to Nigeria at the invitation of the Office of the National Security Advisor (ONSA) and the Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to discuss Binance's activities in the country.