In a sudden turn of events, Bitcoin (BTC), the world’s oldest and most valued cryptocurrency, fell below the $59,000 mark early Thursday, erasing weeks of gains.

The sharp decline was attributed to remarks from US Federal Reserve Chair, Jerome Powell on inflation reduction and intensified selling pressure following a $9-billion release from Mt. Gox.

The market downturn also affected other major cryptocurrencies.

Ether experienced a significant drop, losing over 4% to fall below $3,200. Other leading cryptocurrencies, including Binance’s BNB, Solana, and Dogecoin, saw declines of 5.8%, 9%, and 6.5%, respectively.

The overall Market Fear & Greed Index, as reported by CoinMarketCap, stood at 45, indicating a neutral sentiment.

Despite the widespread downturn, Worldcoin (WLD), led by Sam Altman, defied the trend, emerging as the biggest gainer with a nearly 6 percent increase over 24 hours.

Conversely, Akash Network (AKT) suffered the most significant loss, plunging almost 13 percent in the same period.

After consistently trading above $60,000, Bitcoin fell to under $59,000, down more than 3.8% in the last 24 hours.

The decline is attributed to concerns over the Mt. Gox exchange’s payout process. Administrators of the now-defunct platform are set to distribute more than 137,000 Bitcoins, valued at around $8 billion, to creditors.

This substantial payout, which will occur in phases, has sparked fears that creditors might sell off their returned crypto assets, leading to further price drops as creditors of Mt. Gox will receive their repayments in Bitcoin (BTC) and Bitcoin Cash (BCH).

Starting July 8, 2024, the Nigerian government will implement a 7.5 percent Value Added Tax (VAT) on cryptocurrency transactions for users registered in the country.

This move was announced by the popular cryptocurrency platform, KuCoin, in an email to its Nigerian users.

KuCoin stated in the notice: “We are writing to inform you of an important regulatory update that impacts out users from the Republic of Nigeria.

“Beginning July 8th, 2024, we will collect a Value-Added Tax (VAT) at a rate of 7.5 percent on transaction fees for users whose KYC information is registered in Nigeria.”

Nigeria’s cryptocurrency market is substantial, with official data indicating an annual transaction volume of $59 billion.

Additionally, Ray Youssef, director of the cryptocurrency platform NoOnes, reported that peer-to-peer trading in Nigeria is valued at $500 billion annually.

This announcement comes on the heels of concerns raised by the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Olayemi Cardoso, who in February 2024 flagged a suspicious $26 billion that had been funneled through Binance without a trace.

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), “to account for and explain the whereabouts of the over N100 billion ‘dirty and bad notes’ and ‘other large sum of cash awaiting examination’ which are kept in various branches of the CBN.”

In a statement, the SERAP pointed out that the allegations were documented in the latest annual report recently published by the Auditor-General of the Federation.

Consequently, the SERAP urged CBN governor, Olayemi Cardoso, to “explain the whereabouts of the N7.2 billion budgeted for the construction of the CBN Dutse branch in 2010 and the N4.8 billion budgeted for the renovation of the CBN Abeokuta branch in 2009, and to publish the names of the contractors who collected the money but failed to complete the projects.”

Similarly, the SERAP urged Cardoso “to explain the whereabouts of the allegedly missing outstanding loan of N1.2 billion granted to the Enugu State government in 2015 and the outstanding loan of N1.9 billion granted to the Anambra State government between 2015 and 2016 and to fully recover and remit the public funds to the treasury.”

The SERAP also urged him “to refer these grave violations of the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended], the CBN Act and the country’s national and international anticorruption obligations to appropriate anticorruption agencies for investigation and prosecution, as appropriate, and the recovery of the public funds.”

These demands were detailed in the letter dated June 29, 2024 issued under the signature of Deputy Director, SERAP, Kolawole Oluwadare.

It stated, “These grim allegations by the Auditor-General suggest grave violations of the public trust, the provisions of the Nigerian Constitution, the CBN Act, and national and international anticorruption obligations.

“These grave violations also reflect a failure of CBN accountability more generally and are directly linked to the institution’s persistent failure to comply with its Act and to uphold the principles of transparency and accountability.”

It added that, “These grave violations have seriously undermined the ability of the CBN to effectively discharge its statutory functions and the public trust and confidence in the bank. The CBN ought to be committed to transparency and accountability in its operations.”

The letter, read in part, “We would be grateful if the recommended measures are taken within 7 days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter. If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP shall take all appropriate legal actions to compel you and the CBN to comply with our request in the public interest.

“Explaining the whereabouts of the missing public funds, publishing the names of those suspected to be responsible and ensuring that they are brought to justice and the full recovery of any missing public funds would serve the public interest and end the impunity of perpetrators.

“According to the recently published 2020 audited report by the Auditor General of the Federation (AGF), the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has since 2017 been keeping over N100 billion [N100,672,999,000.00] ‘dirty and bad notes’, and other large sum of cash awaiting examination in various branches of the CBN.

The Auditor-General fears that the ‘dirty and bad notes’ initially planned to be destroyed may have been ‘be diverted and re-injected into the economy.’

“The CBN in August 2010 also reportedly budgeted N7.2 billion [N7,286,500,476.76] for the construction of Dutse branch building. The Dutse branch was due to be completed in November 2012 but the contractors have failed to complete the project.

“The Auditor-General is concerned that the project may have been ‘awarded to incompetent contractor,’ and wants the ‘job completed without further delay.’

“The CBN in 2009 reportedly budgeted N4.8 billion [N4,812,608,028.10] for the renovation of the CBN Abeokuta branch. The Abeokuta branch was due to be completed in 2012 but the contractors have failed to complete the project.

“There is no significant renovation work on the site, several years after the proposed completion date. The Auditor-General is concerned that the project may have been ‘awarded to incompetent contractor,’ and wants the ‘job completed without further delay.’

“The CBN also reportedly failed to account for the missing outstanding loan of N1.2 billion [N1,294,453,887.83] granted to the Enugu state government in 2015 and the outstanding loan of N1.9 billion [N1,994,383,561.64] granted to the Anambra state government between 2015 and 2016.

“The Auditor-General fears the public funds may have been diverted. He wants the money fully recovered and remitted to the treasury.

“Paragraph 708 of the Financial Regulations 2009 provides that, ‘on no account should payment be made for services not yet performed or for goods not yet supplied.’

“Section 35(2) of the Public Procurement Act 2007 provides that, ‘once a mobilization fee has been paid to any supplier or contractor, no further payment shall be made to the supplier or contractor without an interim performance certificate.

“Section 16(6) of the Public Procurement Act states that ‘all bidders shall possess the necessary professional and technical qualifications to carry out particular procurements; the financial capacity and adequate personnel to perform the obligations of the procurement contracts.’

“SERAP notes that Section 15(5) of the Nigerian Constitution requires public institutions to abolish all corrupt practices and abuse of power.” Section 13 of the Constitution imposes clear responsibility on the CBN to conform to, observe and apply the provisions of Chapter 2 of the constitution.

“Paragraph 3112(ii) of the Financial Regulations 2009 provides that, “Where a public officer fails to account for government revenue, such officer shall be surcharged for the full amount involved and such officer shall be handled over to either the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) or the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).”

“Nigeria has made legally binding commitments under the UN Convention against Corruption to ensure accountability in the management of public resources. Articles 5 and 9 of the UN Convention against Corruption also impose legal obligations on the CBN to ensure proper management of public affairs and public funds.

“Nigerians have the right to know the whereabouts of the public funds. Taking the recommended measures would advance the right of Nigerians to restitution, compensation and guarantee of non-repetition.

“The Nigerian Constitution, Freedom of Information Act, and the country’s anti-corruption and human rights obligations rest on the principle that citizens should have access to information regarding their public institutions’ activities.”