ABUJA (Reuters) – Binance’s head of financial compliance Tigran Gambaryan, on trial for money laundering in Nigeria, will know on Oct. 9 whether he will be released on bail or remain in prison custody after a judge deferred ruling on his request on Wednesday.
Gambaryan, a U.S. citizen, has been detained since February in a dispute between the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange and the Nigerian government. He denies any wrongdoing.
Federal High Court judge Emeka Nwete in the capital Abuja listened to hours of arguments from Gambaryan’s lawyer and a state prosecutor, who is opposing the freedom bid made on health grounds.
The lawyer said Gambaryan needs to undergo surgery outside prison and that his health is deteriorating.
Nwete said she would make a ruling next month and sent Gambaryan back to prison.
Binance separately faces tax evasion charges, which it denies.
In March, the exchange stopped all transactions and trading in naira after a country-wide crackdown on crypto exchanges that authorities blamed for feeding a black market for foreign exchange.
(Reporting by Camillus Eboh; Writing by MacDonald Dzirutwe; Editing by Mark Potter)
