The Chairman of the Economic Financial Crimes Commission has called out the growth of cryptocurrency as something dangerous and a threat to the world economy. The EFCC is a Nigerian agency that monitors financial activities and investigates any fraudulent activities that may have occurred, including embezzlement. The chairman Abdulrasheed Bawa revealed the danger cryptocurrency poses to countries’ economies while speaking at a symposium.
Economic Crimes Cause Significant Damage to the Financial Market
The Center for International Documentation on Organized and Economic Crime organized a meeting to discuss economic crimes and their costs. While speaking on the growth of virtual currency in the meeting, the chairman noted that countries must collaborate to fight financial crimes, which are affecting essential structures of the economy and depriving developing countries of the resources required to sustain their growth.
Bawa added that no country is immune from financial crimes, which no longer involve pen and paper, but exists mainly as cyber crimes now. Cybercrimes have exploded in recent years, with criminals demanding ransom and orchestrating various crimes in cryptocurrency payments. According to Bawa, criminals are receiving and sending money in cryptos illegally.
The EFCC boss also shed some light on who should bear economic crimes costs, a topic that has generated diverse views across the world. He said that in any financial crime, victims suffer the most, and it shouldn’t be so. The report from Vanguard newspaper quoted the chairman saying that perpetrators and not the victims should pay for their crimes. Summarily, the EFCC boss advocates for a more collaborative effort by designated authorities to combat the ever-evolving financial crimes world.
Financial crimes are getting much bigger and more complicated, especially with cryptocurrency becoming commonplace amongst millennials. Due to the decentralized nature of cryptocurrency, it is less monitored, which is why criminals use it to perform various transactions. It is becoming a bane to society, and without the joint efforts of these security agencies, perpetrators will keep getting away with their crimes.
Ban on Cryptocurrency Transactions Involving Banks By the CBN Still Upholds
In a bid to protect banks and the economy from the volatility of cryptos, and fight illegal funding, Nigeria’s CBN banned crypto activities involving banks financing crypto investors back in February. While the ban doesn’t reflect on the traders, it negatively impacted the crypto community in the country massively, especially when it involved exchanging crypto to fiat currency.
Nigeria is planning the launch of its first CBDC eNaira, on October 1. The launch of the digital currency will elevate the country’s status in the crypto world, and place them alongside China, as the few countries to have digitized their fiat currencies.