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By Tony Folarin Obajemu
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) says it has begun an investigation into the alleged N1.3tn frauds perpetrated through a digital investment platform, CryptoBank Exchange, known as CBEX.
CBEX reportedy collapsed on Monday, and thousands of investors were unable to gain access to their funds, with many of them besieging the Lagos and Ibadan offices of the platform.
EFCC spokesman, Dele Oyewale, noted on Tuesday that the anti-graft agency would collaborate with the International Criminal Police Organisation to probe the incident.
According to Oyewale, an investigation into CBEX had already been launched before its collapse.
He said that the commission is working round the clock to ensure that that both the local and international operators behind the fraudulent scheme are taken into custody.
“We had our intelligence before the incident. We were already working on it, but now that the scheme has collapsed, the major actors and their collaborators will be brought in.
“We will ensure that we save Nigerians from all these troubles associated with Ponzi schemes. Don’t forget that we already issued an advisory — the 58 companies we alerted the public about. There are many more we are currently investigating.
“We are actively working to handle the CBEX situation. We will collaborate with other regulatory agencies to ensure that Nigerians are protected from this kind of scheme.
“We will do our job—where recovery is possible, we will recover; where prosecution is possible, we will prosecute.
“Overall, we will do our best. Additionally, there are similar frauds across the country that people are unaware of, and we are working to uncover them.
“We are on the local collaborators while we are partnering INTERPOL to trace the foreign operators,” Oyewale stated.
