I was abused for returning $135,000 mistakenly sent to me — Crypto influencer

37-year-old crypto influencer and farmer, Sunusi Danjuma, speaks with AYOOLA OLASUPO about how he discovered $135,000 mistakenly deposited into his digital wallet, why he returned the funds, and the backlash that followed

Could you briefly introduce yourself and what you do?

I am from Kano State. I am a farmer, a cryptocurrency trader and crypto currency influencer with a community of over 350,000 members across various social media platforms, including Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), and TikTok. I am also a marketer in Web3 development. In addition, I run a YouTube channel with about 55,000 subscribers, where I discuss crypto-related topics.

Can you take us back to the moment you first saw $135,000 in your wallet?

I partnered with Bitunix Exchange on September 5, 2025, as their affiliate and promoter in Nigeria. They pay me rebates, which are like daily commissions. Here is how it works: anyone who registers on the exchange using my link pays a trading fee. That fee is calculated, split into two, and 50 per cent is sent to me every 24 hours at 1 a.m.

On Monday, September 29, 2025, while they were trying to send my regular rebate, their system mistakenly sent me a token called USELESS worth 140,000 USDT.

I woke up around 4:30 a.m. and checked my business account. When I tried to send the token, the platform said I couldn’t transfer the full amount in one go, only $4,000 per transaction. So, I made multiple transfers of $4,000 until I succeeded in sending tokens worth $129,000. I left a balance of over 9,000 USDT.

I used a market order to convert the tokens, which naturally causes a drop in price as the volume sells off. That is why some people online pointed out what looked like a minus $4,000; it was simply the effect of the market order. So, I left the remaining $9,000 worth of the USELESS token.

Why didn’t you convert everything?

Before converting anything, I tried to withdraw the token itself. It was available on two blockchains: the EFT and Solana networks. I copied my Phantom wallet address and initiated a withdrawal. I received a One-Time Password, but when it asked me to confirm the withdrawal, I declined. Once I confirmed the token could be withdrawn, I wanted to see if it was also sellable. That was when I converted $129,470 worth of it, leaving the rest.

After the conversion, I tested whether I could withdraw the $129,470. I copied my exchange address, checked, and found it was withdrawable as well. That was when I decided to contact the Bitunix Exchange Business Developer in Africa to find out what was going on.

I have promoted the exchange on my YouTube channel and across all my platforms since our partnership began. The business developer, Skobia, is from Kenya. When I contacted her on WhatsApp, she wasn’t online initially. After about 15 minutes, I messaged the exchange directly through their X handle.

They didn’t respond immediately either, but about 30 minutes later, Skobia replied, saying she had reported the incident to the exchange and that they were not aware of it. She also confirmed that I wasn’t the only person who received such a deposit and that some others had already started withdrawing theirs. She said all the affected accounts would be frozen temporarily. At that point, I couldn’t withdraw anything. My account has since been unfrozen, and I now have full access to it.

What went through your mind when you saw the money in your wallet?

Two things came to mind. First, the amount was simply too much. I’ve been working with different exchanges for over five years. For instance, I almost single-handedly promoted BitGet in northern Nigeria and brought them a huge number of users, yet they never paid me even a quarter or a tenth of what I saw in my Bitunix wallet. I know no exchange would give out more than 100,000 USDT as a reward, no matter how hard you work. So, I immediately suspected it was a glitch. When I converted the figure to naira, it was over N200 million.

Secondly, I didn’t take it too seriously at first. In just three weeks, I had brought about 3,000 new users to their platform, so I considered the possibility that it might be a reward, but I still doubted it. I knew it was too much. When I contacted the business developer, I asked whether it was a glitch or a bonus for my work.

With such a huge amount, many people would have absconded. What guided your decision to return the money so quickly?

The business developer asked me the same question, why I didn’t withdraw it like others. I told her I am a Muslim, and in Islam, our faith does not allow us to take or consume anything that does not belong to us. That was the first thing that came to my mind. I knew I shouldn’t touch the money. That belief made me reach out immediately to confirm with her.

Did you inform any friends or colleagues, and what advice did they give you?

The first people I told were my wives; I have two, and they were the first to know, even before I messaged the business developer. After informing them, I contacted the exchange.

When the exchange didn’t respond for more than 30 minutes, I also posted about it on social media. I wrote on my X account, explaining what I saw in my wallet. I reached out to other influencers with large followings, too, hoping they would publicise it so the exchange would notice and respond.

My wives told me not to touch the money. When I was testing whether it was real, I did it in their presence. When we realised it was withdrawable, they warned me not to take it since it wasn’t mine. They told me to wait for confirmation from the exchange. They even said that if the exchange confirmed it was mine, then we could start planning a vacation; that was their exact response.

There has been a lot of backlash on social media for returning the money. Did you worry about those comments?

I didn’t mind. After I informed the business developer, she sent me a message confirming that it was a glitch and that our accounts had been temporarily closed. I know that no matter what you do, good or bad, people will always have something to say. Human beings are complex. Whatever you do, some will support you, and others will criticise you, even when you’ve done the right thing.

When I posted about the money, some people insulted me for returning it, while others praised me. Some even claimed I was lying. But I wasn’t bothered by those comments because, in life, there will always be two sides to every story.

Has the glitch been resolved now?

The exchange has not replied to me directly, but I’ve been communicating with them through their business developer, and the glitch has been resolved. They have taken back the money and unfrozen my account. I have some funds there that I use for trading, so I asked them to unfreeze it and retrieve their money so I could continue my activities. The business developer told me their technical team was working hard to fix the issue.
(punch)