Trust is more than just a word; it’s an important ingredient that keeps societies together. For generations, Nigerians have built their lives and businesses around communal trust systems.
From the “ajo” and “esusu” savings in the South-West and South-East to the “adashe” system in the North, people have come together to support one another financially.
These traditional saving methods were created to help those who didn’t have access to banks or formal financial institutions. In fact, the system predates any form of western banking systems.
The system worked well because everyone involved trusted each other. There were very few cases of default, but recovery was easy.
People saved and borrowed without needing long contracts or complicated terms. The community was the bank, and trust was the currency. But the same trust that kept communities together has also made them vulnerable to deception. This is especially true in today’s digital world.
The case of CBEX scam will be discussed from the lenses of trust, rise in technology, economic reality of Nigeria and the unwritten psychology of Nigerians towards wealth.
The Rise and Fall of CBEX
In 2024, a new platform called CBEX appeared in Nigeria. CBEX stands for Crypto Bridge Exchange. It promised huge profits through artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency trading. It was presented by its creators as a revolutionary platform that uses AI bots to trade crypto and make money. Nigerians were told that they could double their investments in weeks, sometimes even days.
Signing up was made very simple. You registered online or through someone in your community and deposited a minimum of ₦10,000.
The app was sleek, easy to use, and showed impressive profits rising every day. It looked real and felt futuristic. People started sharing their success stories and referring friends and family. The more people you brought in, the more money you could make, or so it seemed.
But there was a catch. You could only withdraw your profits if you referred more people. This is the classic definition of a Ponzi scheme. Early users get paid from the money brought in by newer users, not from actual business activity.
By early 2025, CBEX had vanished, leaving behind empty bank accounts, broken trust, and thousands of devastated lives.
The Nigerian Scam Landscape: A Repeating Tragedy
CBEX is not the first scam to shake Nigeria, and sadly, it may not be the last. Over the years, many Nigerians have fallen for promises of quick and easy money. The pattern is usually the same. They promise high returns, little risk, and a message of urgency.
One of the most famous scams was MMM Nigeria, which exploded in 2016. It promised 30% returns in just 30 days. Millions of people joined, and when it crashed, lives were ruined. Some victims even took their own lives.
In the mid-2000s, Nospecto Oil and Gas promised steady monthly income from oil investments. It targeted retirees and low-income earners, collecting over ₦22 billion before being shut down by regulators.
Another example is MBA Forex, which ran between 2020 and 2021. It attracted professionals and middle-class investors by offering 15% monthly returns through forex trading. When the payments stopped, billions were lost, and the CEO was arrested.
There was also Galaxy Transportation, which promised 200% profit and focused on working class individuals and market women groups.
These scams all followed the same formula. They were too-good-to-be-true promises, used emotional marketing, and had little to no transparency.
Why CBEX Succeeded So Quickly
CBEX didn’t grow by accident. It cleverly tapped into existing cultural and social structures that Nigerians already trusted.
It spread through betting centers, NYSC orientation camps, markets, family WhatsApp groups, and popular social media influencers. Because people heard about it from someone they knew, it felt safe.
In 2024, the use of Telegram exploded in Nigeria, thanks in part to a viral crypto game called Notcoin. Millions joined Telegram to play the game and earn small crypto rewards.
CBEX promoters used this opportunity to flood Telegram with referral links, fake testimonials, and screenshots showing imaginary profits. One message could reach hundreds in seconds. It became the perfect place to promote a scam.
Around the the same time, artificial intelligence was becoming a hot topic in Nigeria. People were hearing about AI being used in business, healthcare, and even farming. So when CBEX claimed to use AI bots to trade and make money, it sounded believable.
Most Nigerians don’t fully understand how AI or crypto works, which makes it easy for scammers to impress and confuse them with technical terms like “machine learning,” “blockchain,” and “arbitrage.”
Crypto Craze and the Nigerian Reality
Nigerians are one of Africa’s biggest users of cryptocurrency. Young people use platforms like Binance, Bybit, and Bitgetto save, trade, and send money. These apps offer real services with solid security. But CBEX mimicked these trusted platforms without any of the substance.
Many Nigerians, especially new users, found it hard to tell the difference between a real platform and a scam. They saw words like “crypto,” “bots,” and “AI” and assumed it must be legitimate.
The crypto confusion among Nigerians is made worse by a widespread lack of digital financial literacy. People are jumping into crypto without the knowledge needed to avoid traps like CBEX.
The urgent need for financial education cannot be overstated. With more and more Nigerians exploring digital finance, the risk of falling into scams will continue to rise unless people understand how these systems actually work.
Cultural Attitudes Toward Wealth and Risk
In Nigeria, making money isn’t just about comfort. It’s tied to your identity. Wealth brings respect, power, and admiration. Poverty is often seen as a personal failure. So when an opportunity like CBEX comes along, many are willing to take the risk. The risk is not just for profit, but for pride.
In the South-East, where entrepreneurship is celebrated, CBEX was seen as a smart investment. In the North, people joined because community leaders or trusted relatives introduced it to them .In the South-West, where cooperative saving is common, CBEX felt like a digital upgrade to a familiar system.
CBEX used these cultural values to its advantage. It disguised itself as the next step in Nigeria’s trusted financial tradition, mixing old-school community trust with flashy new technology.
The Human Cost: Stories of Pain and Loss
When CBEX collapsed, it didn’t just take money. It also shattered many people’s lives. People lost not only their savings, but also their peace of mind, relationships, and social standing.
Mrs. Chika, a market trader in Aba, joined after her brother told her it was safe. She borrowed from her cooperative to invest. “Now I can’t pay back,” she said. “My children are not in school this term.”
Suleiman, a youth corps member in Kaduna, shared how he and his friends put their NYSC allowances into CBEX after hearing about it at their CDS meeting. “The group chat is dead now,” he said. “No one knows what to do.”
In Kano, Malama Aisha, a retired nurse, put her pension savings into CBEX to start a pharmacy. “Now I have nothing,” she said. “Just prayers and tears.”
These are not just financial losses. People are dealing with depression, shame, anxiety, and fear of being judged. Some have lost friends and family relationships.
Many are too embarrassed to talk about what happened. The emotional trauma is deep and lasting.
The Scope of the Damage
Estimates suggest that Nigerians lost over ₦120 billion to the CBEX scam. While young urbanites were the first wave, the second wave included traders, retirees, and entire cooperative societies.
Women were especially affected, particularly those in group savings programs. Youth corps members used their stipends, and pensioners bet their future on what they thought was a smart investment.
CBEX hurt the people who could least afford to lose. It exploited trust, hope, and the desire for a better life.
In some rural areas, entire communities joined because their leaders said it was safe. Most didn’t even understand what cryptocurrency or AI meant. They just followed someone they believed in. And in the end, they paid the price.
Regulators Too Late, Too Slow
Nigeria’s main financial regulators such as the SEC and the Central Bank of Nigeria eventually released warnings, saying CBEX was not registered. But these warnings came after the damage had already been done. By then, the money was gone, and the scammers had disappeared.
Enforcing regulations is a major challenge in Nigeria. Scammers use fake identities and operate from different countries. Even when caught, legal action is slow and compensation for victims is rare. This has made many Nigerians feel abandoned by the very institutions that are supposed to protect them.
Without fast and effective regulation, digital scams will keep growing. Nigerians need better protection from financial predators who take advantage of weak systems.
Rebuilding Trust in the Aftermath
The CBEX scam left a gaping wound in Nigeria. It wasn’t just about stolen money, it was also about broken trust. People now doubt their neighbors, their community influencers, and even their own judgment.
To heal, Nigeria must focus on education. People need to understand how digital finance works. People need to know what is real and what is not. Regulators must act faster, and scammers must be held accountable. But most importantly, victims need help. The victims need not need just financial help, but emotional and psychological support.
One victim said it best: “The money pained me, but what hurts more is that I brought my friends and family into it. Now they avoid me.”
That is the true cost of scams like CBEX. The true impact does not lie in just the naira lost, but in the lives and relationships that have been shattered.
Conclusion
CBEX may be gone, but the lessons it leaves behind are more urgent than ever. Nigeria needs to address root problems such as poverty, lack of digital education, weak regulation, and cultural over-reliance on communal trust. Without addressing these issues, the next scam is only a click away.
As we look toward the future, Nigeria must build a new kind of financial trust. A system that is based not just on tradition and emotion, but on transparency, education, and strong institutions. Only then can we truly move from trust to truth, instead of trust to trauma.
