The Nigerian Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) has convicted Plip Global Ventures, a local crypto firm, of conducting USDT-to-NGN transactions in the country without a license or registration as an authorized dealer in the Nigeria Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market.
Despite ranking second in the world’s list of crypto-inclined countries, the Nigerian government has not taken a pro-crypto stance. It still upholds a ban on cryptocurrency transactions within its borders.
Plip Global Owner Pleads Guilty
Following a court hearing on Monday, Plip Global has been charged with failure to report a single transfer of $59,950 (NGN 100 million) into its account to the Special Control Unit against Money Laundering (SCUML) of the EFCC, as stated according to Section 11(1)(b) of the Nigerian Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, of 2022.
According to Nairametrics, a local news media, the transaction was processed on December 2023.
Director of Plip Global, Chukwubuka Felix Ogumba, did not appeal or deny the charges in court. Instead, he pleaded guilty on behalf of his establishment.
Court’s Decision
In concluding the case, Justice Inyang Ekwo, a Judge of the Federal High Court of Nigeria, convicted the firm and imposed a fine of $290 (NGN 500,000) to be paid to the Federal Government of Nigeria as stated in the plea bargain agreement between the government and Plip Global.
Additionally, PliP Global will forfeit over $14,900 (NGN 25,000,000), which the EFCC recovered during the investigation progress.
Moreover, he ruled that Ogumba would always be available to provide the EFCC with the needed information about the case whenever there was a call to do so.
Nigerian Crypto Stance
According to a recent report, Nigeria is the only African country ranked among the top 20 in worldwide cryptocurrency adoption despite regulatory issues.
Some popular crypto exchanges like OKX have left the country due to recent changes in local laws to implement strict crypto regulations. Similarly, KuCoin has introduced taxation for Nigerian customers, while Binance has halted peer-to-peer transactions on its platform for users within the country.
Meanwhile, Nigeria has approved two local crypto exchanges, Busha and Quidax, to service its citizens.
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