CBEX: Between greed and economic hardship, by Aderemi Ogunpitan
The recent collapse of CBEX, another glittering Ponzi scheme dressed up as a crypto investment platform, has once again exposed an uncomfortable truth about the Nigerian psyche: we are addicted to the fantasy of instant wealth, and we never seem to learn. Nearly ₦1.3 trillion vanished into thin air, snatched from the pockets of around 300,000 hopeful investors who believed, against all reason, that they would finally “hammer” where others had stumbled.
Economic hardship plays its part, of course. With soaring unemployment, inflation that eats through salaries like acid, and dreams deferred at every turn, many Nigerians live in a permanent state of financial desperation. So when a platform like CBEX appears, promising mouth-watering returns for doing nothing except handing over your life’s savings, the temptation is irresistible. Add to that the gospel of “testimonies” on WhatsApp groups and the sermons of influencers-turned-financial advisors, and the madness becomes a national movement.
One would expect that after MMM, Ultimate Cycler, and a hundred other collapsed castles in the sky, we would have developed some immunity. Instead, cognitive biases like the sunk cost fallacy and the intoxicating lure of social proof ensure that even the most “woke” among us eagerly queue up for the slaughterhouse. It is no longer ignorance; it is a fevered, almost religious belief that this time, things will be different.
Meanwhile, our institutions — those mighty regulatory bodies sworn to protect us — continue their slow waltz to nowhere. SEC sounded the alarm, but nobody listened until the floor caved in. The EFCC showed up dramatically, but only after the funeral. And influencers, happily pocketing their cut, built careers by selling poisoned honey to an already dazed public.
The human cost is staggering. Broken homes, crushed dreams, suicides whispered about in neighborhoods, and a deepening cynicism about anything that smells remotely official. Trust, like the money, evaporates. What is left is a bitter residue of blame, self-loathing, and the stubborn conviction that the only sin was being caught too early.
In a country where overnight success is considered proof of divine favor and patience is seen as the pastime of fools, Ponzi schemes will continue to bloom like weeds after a rainstorm. Unless Nigeria fixes its institutions, educates its people, and somehow cures this chronic fever of “sharp sharp” wealth, we will continue this cycle — gleefully building golden ladders to nowhere, and applauding all the way down.
