Civil Rights advocacy Group: HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) has condemned the hierarchy of the nation’s Security and Exchange Commission for abysmally failing in its regulatory and watchdog’s role by belatedly announcing to Nigerians that CBEX digital trading platform wasn’t accredited to operate in Nigeria.
Besides, HURIWA expressed disappointment and anger on the report in a section of the media that even the usually boisterous and proactive Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) missed out by not informing Nigerians that CBEX digital trading platform is amongst the listed notorious ponzy schemes operating in the Country even when report says the EFCC clearly blacklisted some of the most notorious ponzy schemes in Nigeria.
HURIWA stated that reading in-between the lines of the transcription from the interview granted by the spokesman of
the EFCC, Dele Oyewale, to Channels Television, it does appear that the EFCC never warned Nigerians categorically about the ponzy scheme orchestrated by CBEX digital trading platform.
Dele Oyewale told Channels Television’ thus: “You’ll recall that on March 11 this year, the Executive Chairman of the EFCC, Mr. Ola Olukoyede, had cause to instruct us to alert Nigerians about 58 Ponzi scheme companies; we came out with a list–that shows that we’re proactive and we have our hands on what is happening.
“So, concerning this CBEX thing, we’re on it; it’s not that we didn’t know, and you know we’ve been alerting Nigerians about ways and means to separate themselves from this type of shenanigans.
“So, before the calls came, we were working; while the calls were coming, we were working, and even after the calls, we’re still working.
“We cannot lay any blame on the EFCC concerning this CBEX thing. I’m sure we know that that business venture is a Chinese digital trading company with no jurisdictional link with Nigeria; all the area offices that people are saying are in Ibadan and in some other locations are not functional offices. The entire thing is online.
“And we have been warning Nigerians against criminal engagements online. So, what would you expect the EFCC to do? We have given empowerment, given enlightenment, given public awareness, and raised intelligence”, Oyewale asserted.
HURIWA however heavily blamed SEC for its failure to alert Nigerians just as HURIWA stated that it is absolutely unpardonable that the Director General of the Security and Exchange Commission, Dr Emomotimi Agama had only just disclosed that the CBEX digital trading platform is not registered with the Commission after hundreds of thousands of Nigerians had already been defrauded of several hundreds of thousands of US dollars by the operators who set up visible corporate offices in Lagos, Ibadan and several other places in the Country. “Is it that SEC is absolutely incompetent and uninformed and lacks credible intelligence to detect when Ponzy schemes are physically or virtually present in Nigeria?”
Agama who made this disclosure during an interview with Arise News on Wednesday night also revealed that the Commission has also not received any complaints from the victims of the CBEX fraudulent activities.
He said: “For us at the SEC, our primary responsibility is investor protection, and investor protection stems out of registration and regulation.
“When a scheme is not registered with the SEC, it becomes illegal; and it is important that whoever is interested in investing in such a scheme must ask the question, ‘are you registered with the SEC?’
“If that is not the case, then it is automatically stated and known that such is an illegal activity and will not be condoned even by the SEC.”
He said the SEC was unaware of CBEX’s operation, adding that “often times with schemes like this, most people will always try to keep it away from the regulator and even keep it away from their friends, except a few groups of people whom they are interested in.
HURIWA has therefore called on the National Assembly to investigate why SEC failed to warn Nigerians about the dubious activities of CBEX and the regulatory body is only just waking up from slumber to try to defend its crass incompetence. We are also calling on the EFCC to comprehensively publish on its website the identities of all the suspected Ponzy schemes in Nigeria so Nigerians can avoid such financial mess again.
Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko,
National Coordinator
HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA). Thursday April 17th 2025.
