Binance leaves Nigeria, suspends all naira services

Binance, a cryptocurrency exchange, has declared that it will no longer provide any services relating to the Nigerian naira.

The exchange’s move comes amid Nigeria’s crackdown on global cryptocurrency exchanges.

According to a platform release made on Tuesday, March 5, beginning at 8:00 UTC on March 8, any remaining NGN balances in Binance users’ accounts would be immediately converted to USDT stablecoin.

Users have also been warned to withdraw NGN deposits, as they will be stopped on March 5.

In addition, Binance will no longer offer NGN in spot trading, P2P, Auto Invest, or Binance Pay.

“Any remaining NGN balances in users’ Binance accounts will be instantly converted to USDT,” the exchange announced on Tuesday.

According to The Nation, police in Nigeria have arrested two Binance officials on suspicion of “illegal transactions.”

The federal government is also demanding at least $10 billion in payback from Binance following a crackdown on the crypto exchange platform in a desperate attempt to save the naira, the country’s currency.

Binance, a significant cryptocurrency exchange, was formed in 2017.

It places a major emphasis on cryptocurrency trading. Binance provides crypto-to-crypto trading for over 350 cryptocurrencies and virtual tokens, including bitcoin, ether, litecoin, dogecoin, and its own coin, BNB.

Binance said on its website on Tuesday that the automated conversion rate will be 1 USDT per 1,515.13 naira.