Binance restricts 281 Nigerian cryptocurrency accounts
Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, has restricted the accounts of 281 Nigerian customers.
Changpeng Zhao, the company’s CEO, cited the need to comply with international money laundering regulations in order to ensure the platform’s security for traders.
Changpeng Zhao stated in a letter to Nigerian customers on January 29 that the decision to block some personal accounts was made to ensure user safety, with more than a third of the accounts impacted restricted at the request of international law enforcement.
“To ensure the security of our community, protection methods such as know your customer, anti-money laundering measures, coordination with law enforcement, and account limits are in place,” the crypto exchange stated on its website.
“These personal account limitations have impacted 281 Nigerian accounts, with about 38 percent of these cases prohibited at the request of international law enforcement,” it stated.
“So far, we’ve settled 79 cases, and we’re still working on the others.” “All cases that are not related to law enforcement will be resolved within two weeks,” Changpeng Zhao stated.
Despite the fact that the Nigerian central bank has prohibited the use of cryptocurrency, Nigerians have continued to use it for business, to preserve their savings as the naira’s value has fallen, and to transfer payments internationally as it is often difficult to obtain US dollars in the country.
A number of Nigerians trading on the Binance platform have complained about difficulties initiating or concluding trades.
