Binance Holdings Ltd. has prayed the Federal High Court in Abuja to set aside the ex-parte order granted to the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS) for substituted service of all court documents on it.
Binance lawyer Chukwuka Ikwuazom, SAN, told Justice Inyang Ekwo shortly after the matter was called on Monday.
He informed the court that a motion had already been filed to that effect on Friday.
He said their contention was that the rules of the court for such service had not been complied with before the order was made.
Earlier, counsel to the FIRS, Chief Kanu Agabi, SAN, told the court that the cryptocurrency firm served them with the motion in the morning, seeking to vacate the order for substituted service.
Agabi, however, indicated his interest in responding to the application.
Justice Ekwo said the copy of the motion was not in the court file and Ikwuazom, who apologised to the court, said the application was just filed on Friday.
The judge adjourned the matter until April 30 to allow the FIRS to respond appropriately.
Justice Ekwo had, on Feb 11, granted leave to FIRS to serve its originating summons and accompanying documents on the cryptocurrency firm through substituted means by sending the processes via email address: [email protected].
In the originating summons marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1444/2024, dated and filed Sept. 30, 2024, by Chief Kanu Agabi, SAN, the country’s tax regulatory body sought four questions for determination.
The FIRS prayed the court to determine “whether pursuant to Section 13(2) of the Companies Income Tax (CIT) Act Cap. C21, LFN, 2024 and Order (1)(a) and (c) of Companies Income Tax (Significant Economic Presence) Order 2020, the defendants are not liable to pay annual corporate income tax to the Federal Republic of Nigeria for having had a significant economic presence in Nigeria from 2022 to 2023,” among others.
While moving the ex-parte motion, the agency had submitted that Binance, which had neither physical office in Nigeria nor workers, could only be served by substituted means.
A sister court, presided over by Justice Emeka Nwite had, in Oct. 2024, released Gambaryan after the Federal Government withdrew a money laundering charge filed against him and the company by the EFCC.
