There was pandemonium on Tuesday at the Ibadan outlet of CBEX, a digital trading asset firm, as angry investors stormed the premises in protest, vandalising property and looting valuables.

The unrest, which occurred in the Oyo State capital, was triggered by reports that investors had been unable to access or withdraw funds from their accounts on the platform for several days. Matters escalated when many of them reportedly discovered that their investments had completely vanished.

The protest, initially peaceful, quickly degenerated into violence, resulting in looting and physical assaults on some staff members of the firm. Witnesses say the situation became uncontrollable as emotions flared and the aggrieved investors accused the company of operating a Ponzi scheme.

The affected investors were said to cut across various walks of life, including artisans, traders, and civil servants, all of whom had put their trust—and money—into the digital trading venture.

It took the intervention of security operatives to restore calm and disperse the rampaging crowd. Officers have since cordoned off the building and maintained a presence overnight to forestall further breakdown of law and order.

As of Wednesday morning, normalcy had returned to the area. Vehicular and pedestrian movement has resumed, with business activities gradually picking up.

Authorities are yet to issue an official statement on the matter, but concerned stakeholders are calling for a thorough investigation into the operations of CBEX to protect future investors from similar occurrences.

There was pandemonium on Tuesday at the Ibadan outlet of CBEX, a digital trading asset firm, as angry investors stormed the premises in protest, vandalising property and looting valuables.

The unrest, which occurred in the Oyo State capital, was triggered by reports that investors had been unable to access or withdraw funds from their accounts on the platform for several days. Matters escalated when many of them reportedly discovered that their investments had completely vanished.

The protest, initially peaceful, quickly degenerated into violence, resulting in looting and physical assaults on some staff members of the firm. Witnesses say the situation became uncontrollable as emotions flared and the aggrieved investors accused the company of operating a Ponzi scheme.

The affected investors were said to cut across various walks of life, including artisans, traders, and civil servants, all of whom had put their trust—and money—into the digital trading venture.

It took the intervention of security operatives to restore calm and disperse the rampaging crowd. Officers have since cordoned off the building and maintained a presence overnight to forestall further breakdown of law and order.

As of Wednesday morning, normalcy had returned to the area. Vehicular and pedestrian movement has resumed, with business activities gradually picking up.

Authorities are yet to issue an official statement on the matter, but concerned stakeholders are calling for a thorough investigation into the operations of CBEX to protect future investors from similar occurrences.

China has announced a sharp increase in tariffs on US imports, raising the rate from 34 percent to 84 percent, in response to new American trade measures that came into effect on Wednesday.

The decision, confirmed by China’s finance ministry, will take effect from 12:01 p.m. on Thursday. It follows the imposition of sweeping new US tariffs under President Donald Trump, including a hefty 104 percent duty on certain Chinese goods.

“The tariff escalation against China by the United States simply piles mistakes on top of mistakes and severely infringes on China’s legitimate rights and interests,” the ministry said in a strongly worded statement, warning of “firm and forceful” countermeasures.

Beijing has long opposed the increasing use of tariffs as a tool in trade disputes, and accused Washington of undermining the multilateral rules-based global trading system.

In a related move, China’s commerce ministry also announced it would blacklist six American artificial intelligence companies, including Shield AI Inc. and Sierra Nevada Corporation. The companies were accused of either supplying arms to Taiwan or collaborating with the island on military technology.