CBEX Scandal: Former Buhari’s Aide Reacts As Alleged Ponzi Scheme Collapse

CBEX Scandal: Former Buhari’s Aide Reacts As Alleged Ponzi Scheme Collapse

  • Former presidential aide, Bashir Ahmad, said the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) warned Nigerians against investing in CBEX
  • Ahmad said Nigerians always ignore regulatory agencies' warnings whenever Ponzi schemes are introduced in the country
  • Some Nigerians said SEC should have shut down CBEX offices and stop Nigerians from patronising them than issuing warnings

Legit.ng journalist, Adekunle Dada has over 8 years of experience covering metro, government policy, and international issues

FCT, Abuja - Former Special Assistant to ex-president Muhammadu Buhari on Digital Communications, Bashir Ahmad, has reacted to the collapse of CBEX investment.

Legit.ng recalls that after days of trending on social media, CBEX, an investment platform, allegedly crashed .

Former Buhari's aide reacts as CBEX collapse after SEC warning
Bashir Ahmad says regulatory agencies always warn Nigerians whenever Ponzi schemes are introduced. Photo credit: @BashirAhmaad/@drpenking
Source: Twitter

Trillions of naira belonging to investors in several countries have been trapped on the platform.

While some Nigerians are lamenting on social media, some are said to have hit the streets, looting the CBEX office.

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Reacting to CBX collapse, Ahmad said the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) warned Nigerians against patronising CBEX.

The former presidential aide said SEC clarified that CBEX did not register with the Commission.

He wondered how Nigerians went ahead to invest their money after being warned by the SEC.

Ahmad made this known in a post shared via his X handle @BashirAhmaad on Tuesday, April 15, 2025.

“So, our Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) warned Nigerians against patronizing CBEX after they clarified that they did not register with the Commission, and our people still went ahead and invested their money.”

He further stated that:

"Whenever Ponzi schemes are introduced in Nigeria, our regulatory agencies do their best to warn and caution people, but our people often ignore these warnings until it's too late."

Nigerians react

@omorogiec

90% of those who put their money into that platform knew from the start that they were investing in a Ponzi scheme but greed won't make them look away.

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Nigerians react as Investors storm CBEX office, cart away with items

Anyone who overcomes greed will conquer the world.

@Kayloaded1

So why did SEC and @officialEFCC allowed CBEX to continue to operate knowing they are unregistered.
At least they would have just close down the office instead of allowing them to scam people.

@Oveymoses

Are they to warn Nigerians or shutdown their offices and arrest them for operating illegally? Govt fail to do d needful.

@TheHeroNG

If you only just knew about it, it means the public enlightenment failed. SEC can do better. SMS, print media, radio & tv, social media, billboards etc.

@KJoseph4020

Honestly i haven't heard the warning. With the way the operators tutored me, I was convince it real financial investment. Our financial crime agents are not doing well. They shouldn't allow them operate in the first place. I took that risk innocently, I have moved on.

@LexxyChico

That's because someone that didn't give you money or helped you in any way can't tell you how to spend your money. Also the people have zero trust in a govt that banned trading crypto. But to invest in CBEX is plain foolishness regardless.

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Angry youths Loot CBEX office after losing money

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that angry youths who have invested in CBEX stormed the Ibadan office following the crash of the platform.

The CBEX investors forcibly entered the premises and carted away valuable items from the office.

It was gathered that many users were allegedly left with zero balance in their accounts after the platform crashed.

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Source: Legit.ng

Authors:
Adekunle Dada avatar

Adekunle Dada (Politics and Current Affairs Editor) Adekunle Dada is a trained journalist with over 8 years of working experience. He is also a Politics/Current Affairs Editor at Legit.ng. He holds a B.Sc. in Mass Communication from Lagos State University, Ojo. Adekunle previously worked at PM News, The Sun, and Within Nigeria, where he expressed his journalistic skills with well-researched articles and features. In 2024, Adekunle obtained a certificate in advanced digital reporting from the Google News Initiative. He can be reached via adekunle.dada@corp.legit.ng.