The Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Dr. Emomotimi Agama, has declared that CBEX, the embattled digital trading platform that recently crashed, was never registered with the regulatory body.
Dr. Agama made the revelation during an interview on Arise Xchange on Wednesday, April 16, 2025, while addressing the public outcry that followed the collapse of the CBEX scheme.
According to reports, over N1.3 trillion was wiped from investors’ accounts when CBEX—widely promoted as a platform promising a 100 percent return on investment within 30 days—suddenly crashed on Monday, leaving countless Nigerians counting their losses.
While expressing deep sympathy for the affected victims, Dr. Agama stated that the SEC had neither approved the platform nor received any official complaints about its operations prior to the collapse.
“It’s important to state clearly that the SEC was not aware of the illegal operation of CBEX,” the SEC DG said. “What happens often with schemes like this is that most people try to keep it away from the regulator and even their friends, except a small circle they trust.”
He continued: “As we speak, we have not received any formal complaint from anyone regarding CBEX. If we had, the SEC team would have immediately swung into action to identify those involved.”
The statement, which was also made available to Daily Trust, further emphasized the Commission’s repeated warnings against unregistered investment platforms, branding them illegal under Nigerian financial regulations.
Agama assured the public that SEC is not taking the situation lightly and will initiate a full investigation aimed at bringing the perpetrators to book.
“We sympathise very much with the victims because they are Nigerians. As a Commission, we are committed to ensuring that justice is served,” he said.
“We will commence an investigation to trace the operators of CBEX. The law empowers us to not only fine them but also send them to prison for up to ten years.”
He reiterated the SEC’s commitment to investor protection and regulatory enforcement, stressing that the law would be applied to its full extent against those behind the collapsed scheme.
