Like many Nigerians I’m pretty scared and frustrated at the moment. CBEX, a new digital financial platform, has locked out thousands of investors from their accounts. This troubling turn of events came to light late last weekend when users began reporting that they were unable to access LogMeIn. The frustration of these investors deepened by Monday, as they still found door after door closed to their money.
CBEX as deployed in Nigeria was launched in November 2015. It guaranteed investors a jaw-dropping 30% return on their money in only 30 days. At its zenith, the platform counted close to three million active members. The recent inability of users to access their money has raised serious concerns about the platform’s stability and integrity. A lot of people are starting to wonder whether CBEX ran something akin to a Ponzi scheme. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has sounded the alarm on these issues. The SEC has previously advised Americans of the dangers of unregulated digital marketplaces and urged them to protect themselves from crypto-related frauds and other illicit activities.
The turmoil culminated in February with the looting of a CBEX office by irate clients in the south-western city of Ibadan. Eyewitnesses said that people fled with couches, air-conditioners and even a solar panel. They undertook this action as part of a last ditch effort to protest.
Another investor, known only as Ola, made a passionate appeal about the precariousness of his investment. He said he is worried about the risk that he will lose his 450,000 naira (about $280, £210). He thought he was enticed by the promise of attractive returns.
“I was ready to withdraw all my investment just last week but my friend told me to be patient and wait – and now it has crashed,” – Ola
The sudden collapse of CBEX has left hundreds of dejected and disappointed investors in its wake. So many others have told us about their experiences with life-altering financial devastation. These experiences merely scratch the surface of the emotional toll on hundreds of thousands of people who trusted the platform with their life savings.
With anger boiling over, communities of color are holding leaders to account. Thus far, CBEX has issued no public statements regarding the current crisis. This lack of transparency leaves only more uncertainty and anxiety in the hearts of its investors.
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