The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) contemplates prosecution of 300 Forex Racketeers engaged in Peer-to-Peer Trading beyond Regulatory Bounds.
In a recent interactive session with editors and bureau chiefs in Abuja, EFCC Chairman Ola Olukoyede hinted at potential prosecution proceedings against approximately 300 individuals involved in forex racketeering via a peer-to-peer platform, circumventing financial regulations.
The revelation came alongside news of the freezing of multiple accounts pursuant to a court order issued on Monday.
Notably, one of the frozen accounts purportedly facilitated transactions exceeding $15 billion within the past year alone.
This development follows the Federal Government’s proactive measures, including the recent blocking of online platforms operated by Binance and other cryptocurrency firms by the Nigerian Communications Commission.
The government’s actions aim to curb forex market manipulation and prevent illicit fund movements.
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Furthermore, amid efforts to stabilize the naira and combat speculation, Nigerian authorities detained two senior executives of Binance, a prominent cryptocurrency exchange.
Additionally, EFCC operatives were dispatched to apprehend Bureau De Change operators in Abuja’s bustling Wuse Zone 4.
The head of EFCC underscored these measures as vital safeguards for the foreign exchange market and the overall economy also emphasized his agency’s concentration on combating illegal mining, labeling it as a form of economic crime.
He emphasized the positive impact on the naira’s value and the forex market’s stability. However, he stressed the indispensable role of public support, asserting that the agency’s success is synonymous with Nigeria’s success.
He stated:
“We observe due process in whatever we do. Do you know that the Binance case we are currently handling now has helped us to bring down the madness in the forex market?”
“Suddenly, we discovered that there are people in the system who are even doing worse than Binance. They called them P2P and all of that.”
“We noticed in the last two days ago that dollars have started appreciating. There was stability for 24 hours, then the naira was devalued again by N20 and N25. I don’t know whether you noticed that.”
“It was due to the activities of some of these guys on P2P platforms like coolcoin. Some of you must have seen them on social media. To shock you; just yesterday (Monday), I asked them to freeze over 300 accounts. We found that one of those guys (account owners), had traded over $15bn last year.”
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“Our job is serious. We work 18 hours per day. We are not saying that Nigerians should praise us because that was what we signed for but where we deserve, we should be given. We are humans like Nigerians.”
“Over 300 accounts in illicit forex trading that would have led to another crash in the next one week if we didn’t move yesterday. Some people just want to see this country go from bad to worse.”
“We must find a way to work together. We got an order to freeze those accounts; Imagine what would have happened if we didn’t seize those accounts”.
Amid the inaccessibility of websites belonging to major cryptocurrency exchanges such as Binance, Coinbase, and Kraken within the nation, reports have surfaced indicating a shift among crypto traders towards alternative platforms. These alternatives, including Bybit, Bitget, Kucoin, and Coincola, have reportedly gained traction.
Additionally, traders are reportedly turning to messaging platforms such as Telegram, which conveniently offers an in-app wallet feature, facilitating transactions.