- Nigeria’s court postpones Binance exchange tax evasion case until the end of April.
- FIRS claims that Binanace owes $2 billion in taxes plus $79.5 billion in economic damages.
- The legal dispute centers around jurisdictional issues and service of documents.
The legal confrontation between cryptocurrency exchange Binance and Nigerian authorities has been postponed until April 30. The delay comes as the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) requires additional time to respond to legal challenges from the exchange.
According to a statement from Binance’s legal representatives, the adjournment will allow tax authorities to address jurisdictional questions raised by the defense team. The tax dispute has escalated with Nigerian authorities seeking approximately $2 billion in unpaid taxes from the cryptocurrency exchange. Beyond these direct tax claims, the FIRS also demanded $79.5 billion in damages for alleged economic losses.
Meanwhile, Nigerian tax authorities alleged that Binance established a “significant economic presence” within the country, which makes it subject to corporate income tax obligations. The FIRS is specifically pursuing tax payments for 2022 and 2023, along with a 10% annual penalty on all unpaid amounts.
The postponement comes from Binance’s application to nullify a previous court order that permitted the service of legal documents via email. Chukwuka Ikwuazom, representing Binance in the proceedings, argued that this service method was fundamentally invalid because Nigerian authorities failed to obtain proper judicial permission to serve legal papers outside Nigeria’s borders.
“On the whole, the order for the substituted service as granted by the court on February 11, 2025, on Binance, which is registered under the laws of Cayman Islands and resident in Cayman Islands, is improper and should be set aside,” Ikwuazom stated during the proceedings.
The court granted the adjournment to allow tax authorities time to prepare formal responses to these jurisdictional arguments. The FIRS is expected to defend the validity of its court-sanctioned service methods at the next hearing.
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The tax case is just one component of Nigeria’s broader crackdown on cryptocurrency platforms, which government officials have blamed for destabilizing the country’s currency markets. In 2024, Nigerian authorities detained two Binance executives as part of an investigation into the exchange’s role in facilitating naira-denominated cryptocurrency transactions.
Nigerian officials have alleged that platforms like Binance undermine official exchange rates and allow capital flight through peer-to-peer markets. While Binance lacks official licensing to operate in Nigeria, the platform remains widely used by local citizens. This has created a regulatory gray area that authorities are increasingly targeting.
The tax battle comes against a backdrop of growing cryptocurrency adoption in Nigeria. The country’s central bank prohibited financial institutions from carrying out cryptocurrency transactions in 2021. However, peer-to-peer trading has flourished. As the April 30 court date approaches, both sides will be preparing their legal arguments regarding jurisdictional validity and tax obligations. For Binance, the case is just another regulatory challenge in its global operations.
