CBEX Crypto Scam: Suspects on the Run as EFCC Recovers Part of Trillions Lost

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) recovered some of the money linked to the collapsed Crypto Bridge Exchange (CBEX) online Ponzi scheme virtual investment that collapsed earlier this year. 

EFCC Chairman Ola Olukoyede explained that some of the money stolen has been returned, though he won’t say the amount since the case is sensitive and ongoing.

CBEX, which attracted thousands of Nigerian investors with the promise of unusually high returns from the sale of cryptocurrencies, abruptly shut down in April 2025. The site had offered investors a 30 to 100 percent return in 30 days, attracting victims with its glamorous party advertising and blatant display of patronage. The scam also fell apart after the administrators abruptly shut down customers’ access to their accounts. Investor losses are currently estimated at some N1.3 trillion.

As he remarked in a press conference, Olukoyede explained that some of the fraud suspects have been apprehended, and others are still on the loose and being pursued and prosecuted. The EFCC has investigated other digital wallets used in the operation concerning how the stolen assets were rerouted and transformed.

It is arguably one of the largest technical challenges the recovery process entails: reversing hijacked cryptocurrency to fiat currencies such as the US dollar. Olukoyede compared the same involved routes one uses to hijack the digital currencies one has to reverse and gain from, and that renders the operation so sensitive and delicate, clandestinely accomplishing the same without jeopardizing leads.

The research also revealed how foreign nationals-dominated CBEX utilized the services of local facilitators to establish credibility in Nigerian communities. The facilitators were the main organizers of marketing events, seminars, and conferences. In other cases, academics were utilized as experts in making presentations to provide the platform with credibility and scam the public.

It is video evidence produced on record for marketing campaigns in which celebrity personalities endorsed CBEX’s products, as per EFCC reports. It effectively disguised the fraud scheme and made it appear like a respectable financial endeavor.

The actual bombshell was dropped on April 9, when CBEX abruptly halted withdrawals. Initially ignored by everyone as a glitch, it went wrong when investors were asked to put more funds into their accounts in a futile effort to regain access to their wallets. In a worst horror-inducing action, investors with more than $1,000 were asked to invest at least $200 to “unlock” their wallets, a scam that further added to their losses.

As the crackdown continues, the EFCC has cautioned the public against being duped by the same high-yield investment scams beyond the regulator’s control. Olukoyede once again emphasized the importance of public sensitization and exercising due diligence in transacting with digital financial products, especially when cryptocurrency is increasingly being used for criminal purposes.

EFCC is also in the relentless pursuit of justice in the case of CBEX and is recovering as much of the loot as possible. The people are requested to volunteer any information that will aid the investigation.