In what is now being described as one of Nigeria’s biggest cryptocurrency scams, thousands of investors have been left stranded and heartbroken following the sudden collapse of CBEX, a trading platform that promised high returns and claimed to use artificial intelligence for crypto investments.
CBEX, which presented itself as a legitimate international platform with supposed ties to the China Beijing Equity Exchange and a Canadian registration, lured investors with the promise of 100% returns within 30 days. It also operated a multi-level referral system, encouraging users to recruit others with the promise of bonuses and rewards.
By early April 2025, investors began to notice suspicious activities as CBEX suddenly froze all accounts and disabled withdrawal options on its app. Panic quickly spread, prompting some investors to storm CBEX’s offices in Lagos and Ibadan, only to find them shut down.
According to reports, the total amount lost could be as high as ₦1.3 trillion (approximately $800 million), though other analyses place the loss closer to $12 million. Investigations revealed that CBEX operated without a license from the Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and was never a registered financial entity in Canada or China.
The scam has also been linked to other fraudulent crypto schemes such as LWEX and PCEX, and it appears to have used payment systems connected to Huione Pay, a Southeast Asian platform previously flagged for suspicious financial activities.
The Nigerian SEC has since reiterated that any investment platform not registered with the commission is illegal. Meanwhile, Interpol has reportedly been called in to assist with tracking down those behind the scam, as the international dimensions of the fraud become clearer.
This incident has once again raised concerns about the safety of online investment platforms and the urgent need for public awareness around financial scams, especially those that promise unrealistically high returns.
