The Federal Inland Revenue Service and the Federal Republic of Nigeria are suing Binance in the Federal High Court in Abuja. They seek $79.5B in alleged economic damages for harm to the naira and about $2B in back taxes, penalties, and interest. In a parallel tax evasion prosecution, the parties are discussing settlement, and the court set September 24, 2026, for a report on settlement or continuation of trial.
Latest development Jul 9, 2026
On July 9, 2026, Justice Nwite adjourned the tax evasion case to September 24, 2026, for a report of settlement or continuation of trial. Both sides said they were still pursuing an out-of-court resolution, first raised in March 2026. Prosecution counsel also cited Justice Nwite’s reported elevation to the Court of Appeal.
Why it matters
The civil suit tests whether a sovereign can hold an offshore crypto exchange liable for currency depreciation caused by its users’ trading. Both cases also test whether a global exchange without a local office has a taxable presence in Nigeria.
Background
The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the Federal Republic of Nigeria are pursuing Binance Holdings Limited on two connected fronts. Both cases are before the Federal High Court in Abuja. In February 2024, FIRS filed a four-count tax evasion charge against Binance and two executives, Tigran Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla. The counts allege failure to register for value added tax (VAT), non-payment of company income tax, and facilitation of customer tax evasion. The case, FHC/ABJ/CR/115/2024, is before Justice Emeka Nwite.
Nigerian authorities detained both executives in early 2024, and Anjarwalla escaped custody. He remains a fugitive. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) separately charged Binance, Gambaryan, and Anjarwalla with laundering about $34.4M allegedly generated by Binance’s Nigerian operations. On June 14, 2024, prosecutors filed an amended tax charge naming Binance as the sole defendant, and Justice Nwite struck out the two executives. On July 12, 2024, Binance pleaded not guilty through its Nigerian representative, Ayodele Omotilewa.
Gambaryan remained in custody for months. On October 11, 2024, the court denied him bail for a second time in the money-laundering case. He was eventually released.
In February 2025, FIRS and the Federal Republic of Nigeria filed a civil suit before Justice Inyang Ekwo. It seeks about $79.5B in alleged economic damages for naira volatility that Nigeria blames on Binance’s peer-to-peer crypto trading platform. It also seeks close to $2B in back taxes, penalties, and interest for 2022 and 2023, for a total of about $81.5B. Binance contests jurisdiction, arguing that it has no taxable presence in Nigeria. It has also applied to nullify service, arguing that the email address FIRS used for service does not exist.
In March 2026, the parties told the court in the tax evasion case that they were exploring an out-of-court settlement. The court has since adjourned the case repeatedly for settlement reports. On May 13, 2026, the National Judicial Council recommended Justice Nwite for elevation to the Court of Appeal. On July 9, 2026, the court adjourned the case to September 24, 2026, for a report of settlement or continuation of trial. The status of the civil damages claim before Justice Ekwo is less publicly documented.
Timeline 12 events
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OrderProsecution cites Justice Nwite’s reported elevation as reason for delay
At the July 9, 2026, hearing, prosecution counsel Moses Ideho said the case could not proceed partly because of Justice Nwite’s reported elevation to the Court of Appeal. He also cited ongoing settlement talks between Binance and the Federal Government.
Court Adjourns Binance Tax Evasion Case Over Settlement Talks – The Whistler NewspaperCourt Adjourns Alleged Binance Tax Evasion Case over Settlement Talks – Nigerian CommunicationWeekNigeria: Court Adjourns Tax Evasion Suit Against Binance - allAfrica.com
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OrderCourt further adjourns tax evasion case to September 24, 2026
Justice Nwite adjourned the case again after government counsel Moses Ideho said both sides remained in settlement talks. The court set the new date for a report on the outcome.
Binance Tax Evasion Case Adjourned To September As Nigeria, Crypto Firm Pursue Out-Of-Court SettlementNigeria: Court Adjourns Tax Evasion Suit Against Binance
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OtherNational Judicial Council recommends Justice Nwite for elevation to Court of Appeal
Nigeria’s National Judicial Council recommended Justice Emeka Nwite, who presides over the Binance tax evasion case, along with 11 other judges, for appointment as Justices of the Court of Appeal.
NJC Recommends Elevation Of 12 Justices To Court Of Appeal • Channels TelevisionNJC Recommends Emeka Nwite, 11 Others As New Appeal Court Justices, Suspends Two JudgesNJC recommends 12 new Justices of the Court of Appeal
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OrderCourt adjourns tax evasion case to July for report of settlement
Justice Nwite adjourned the case to July 9, 2026, after Binance’s counsel, Chukwuka Ikwuazom SAN, and government counsel Omotola Fatogun reported ongoing settlement discussions.
Court adjourns FG's suit against Binance for report of settlement
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SettlementParties first raise out-of-court settlement of tax evasion case
Binance and the Nigerian government told the Federal High Court they were pursuing an out-of-court settlement of the tax evasion prosecution.
Nigeria: Alleged Tax Evasion - Binance Seeks Out-of-Court Settlement With FG
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FilingNigeria files $81.5B civil suit against Binance
The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the Federal Republic of Nigeria sought about $79.5B in alleged economic damages from naira depreciation and roughly $2B in back taxes and penalties. The court assigned the suit to Justice Inyang Ekwo.
Nigeria Files New $81.5 Billion Lawsuit Against BinanceFG Files Fresh $81.5 Billion Lawsuit Against Binance
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OrderBinance moves to nullify service of the $81.5B suit
Binance’s counsel, Chukwuka Ikwuazom SAN, applied before Justice Ekwo to nullify the service procedure used by the Federal Inland Revenue Service. He argued that the email address used for service does not exist.
Binance Seeks To Nullify Nigeria's $81 Billion Lawsuit, Claims Email For Service Doesn't Exist
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HearingCourt denies Gambaryan bail a second time
In the parallel money-laundering proceedings, the Federal High Court in Abuja denied detained Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan bail for a second time.
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HearingBinance pleads not guilty to amended tax evasion charge
Binance was re-arraigned on the amended four-count charge before Justice Nwite. Its Nigerian representative, Ayodele Omotilewa, entered the plea on the company’s behalf.
Binance Seeks Deal With Nigerian Govt On Tax Evasion Charges
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OrderCourt strikes out executives as defendants in tax evasion case
Justice Nwite struck out Gambaryan and Anjarwalla after prosecutors filed an amended charge naming Binance Holdings as the sole defendant.
Nigeria: Alleged Tax Evasion - Binance Seeks Out-of-Court Settlement With FG
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FilingNigeria charges Binance and two executives with tax evasion
The Federal Inland Revenue Service filed the four-count charge against Binance Holdings, Tigran Gambaryan, and Nadeem Anjarwalla at the Federal High Court in Abuja. The case later received number FHC/ABJ/CR/115/2024.
Nigeria charges crypto exchange Binance for evasion, 3 other crimes
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FilingEFCC arraigns Binance and executives on separate money-laundering charge
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission charged Binance, Gambaryan, and Anjarwalla with laundering about $34.4M allegedly generated from Binance’s Nigerian operations. The case ran alongside the tax evasion prosecution.
EFCC Arraigns Binance, Executive for alleged $34m Money LaunderingNigeria restarts $35M money laundering case against Binance
Experimental AI forecast
How it is madeWill the Nigerian tax evasion prosecution of Binance (FHC/ABJ/CR/115/2024) end through a reported settlement by September 30, 2027?
- Nigeria and Binance settle tax case47%
- Still pending on September 30, 202743%
- Tax charge struck out without deal10%
- Resolves by
- Sep 30, 2027in 11 months
- Record confidence
- Low
A settlement that ends the tax prosecution is the most likely result, at 47%, by September 30, 2027. Both sides have told the court since March 2026 that they are negotiating. The judge’s pending elevation also makes a restarted trial costly. Slow Nigerian procedure keeps a still-pending outcome close behind.
How it resolves. Resolves “settlement” if court records or credible public reports show that Nigeria (FIRS or the Nigeria Revenue Service) and Binance concluded a settlement and the tax charge was withdrawn, struck out, or otherwise terminated on that basis by September 30, 2027. Resolves “dismissed” if the charge is withdrawn, struck out, or dismissed by that date with no reported settlement, for example for want of diligent prosecution. Resolves “unresolved” if the prosecution remains open on September 30, 2027. This includes cases where trial has resumed, the case was reassigned, or a settlement was announced but the charge was not yet terminated.
Reasoning
Starting point. Long-running government enforcement actions against multinational firms in Nigeria where the parties have told the court they are negotiating a settlement.: Roughly half of Nigerian enforcement disputes with foreign firms that reach formal settlement talks conclude by deal within about a year. Examples include MTN and Meta. Many others drag on through repeated adjournments.
Nigerian regulators have resolved several disputes with foreign firms by negotiated payments, but timelines often stretch over repeated adjournments. Here both sides have reported settlement talks at every hearing since March 2026, which points toward a deal. Justice Nwite’s recommended elevation to the Court of Appeal means a successor judge would likely restart the trial, which raises the cost of fighting on for both sides. Binance has reputational and regulatory reasons to close its Nigerian exposure, and the government can present a payment as a win. The record does not show the outcome of the September 24, 2026, hearing, and no terms have been reported. The parallel $81.5 billion civil claim and the separate money-laundering case may complicate a global deal and slow any withdrawal. A charge struck out without a deal is a smaller risk, mainly through prolonged inactivity. The leading alternative is that talks continue through more adjournments and leave the case open on September 30, 2027.
Repeated joint reports of settlement talks since March 2026 · Judge’s elevation likely forces reassignment and a restarted trial · Parallel civil claim may complicate a global settlement · Slow Nigerian adjournment practice favors prolonged pendency · Binance’s incentive to resolve regulatory exposure in Nigeria
Generated automatically by Claude Opus 5.5 on Sep 24, 2026 from this case’s record on this site, and published without editorial review. The probabilities are the model’s judgment, not measured frequencies, and they are scored publicly as cases resolve. Not legal or investment advice. How the forecasts are made