EFCC FREEZES 300 P2P ACCOUNTS IN FOREX CRACKDOWN

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has taken action to safeguard the stability of Nigeria’s foreign exchange market. The agency chairman, Ola Olukoyede, revealed a concerning scheme involving peer-to-peer (P2P) forex trading platforms operating outside official regulations.

These platforms, according to Olukoyede, pose a significant threat and have facilitated over $15 billion in transactions in the past year alone, bypassing financial controls. To address this issue, the EFCC has frozen approximately 300 accounts associated with these P2P platforms.

Binance Executive Arrested

In a separate development, Kenyan authorities have arrested Nadeem Anjarwalla, a regional executive for cryptocurrency platform Binance. Anjarwalla had previously fled Nigeria after the government initiated a crackdown on Binance aimed at bolstering the Nigerian Naira.

The EFCC, along with international law enforcement agencies, had been pursuing Anjarwalla’s extradition for alleged offenses including tax evasion, currency speculation, and money laundering. These charges reportedly involve sums exceeding $35 million.

Crackdown on Unregulated Forex Activity

The arrest and account freezes highlight the Nigerian government’s commitment to regulating forex activity and preventing financial disruptions. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) previously raised concerns about over $26 billion in untraceable transactions linked to Binance.

These developments indicate a heightened focus on ensuring transparency and stability in Nigeria’s financial system. The EFCC’s actions target unregulated P2P platforms, while the pursuit of Anjarwalla underscores the seriousness with which authorities view alleged financial crimes.

https://statisticss.com/2024/04/25/efcc-freezes-300…-forex-crackdown/

Source: Peter Oluka by Techeconomy