The Chief Executive Officer of Binance, Changpeng Zhao has issued a cease and desist order to “Binance Nigeria Limited”, calling the Nigerian company a “scammer entity”.
Zhao issued the cease and desist on Sunday via a tweet.
Earlier this month, Nigeria’s markets regulator ordered the exchange to halt its operations in the country, saying local unit “Binance Nigeria Limited” that courted Nigerian investors through a website was not registered or regulated, making it illegal.
“Binance Nigeria Limited is hereby directed to immediately stop soliciting Nigerian investors in any form whatsoever,” the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said in a statement dated June 9. It said the company was not registered or regulated, making it illegal.
Binance, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange, has faced a string of setbacks recently, announcing plans to leave the Netherlands, Cyprus, Canada and Australia, and being charged by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The SEC sued the company and Zhao earlier this month alleging that the company artificially inflated its trading volumes, diverted customer funds, and misled investors about its market surveillance controls. The exchange company disputes the SEC charges.
