Crypto giant Binance must pay billion-euro fine
According to media reports, crypto giant Binance has reached a deal with the judiciary in the US. The platform is allowed to continue doing business, but must pay a billion-euro fine. The fate of co-founder Zhao also plays a role in the agreement.
According to a media report, the world's largest cryptocurrency platform Binance will pay fines totaling 4.3 billion dollars (just under four billion euros) in the US. In addition, Binance founder Changpeng Zhao will vacate his position at the head of the digital currency exchange, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing informed sources.
According to the report, Zhao wanted to plead guilty to violating anti-money laundering rules in a US federal court in Seattle. The guilty plea, the resignation of the company's top management and the billion-euro fines are part of a settlement with the judiciary and authorities in the US that will allow Binance to continue operating in the country, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Zhao founded Binance in 2017 and made it the largest cryptocurrency platform in the world. For a while, the Chinese-Canadian entrepreneur and billionaire was seen as the great adversary of Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the now bankrupt platform FTX, who was recently found guilty of fraud in the US.
The US authorities have tightened their approach to cryptocurrency platforms in recent years. In principle, the market is barely regulated.
The settlement between Binance and the US judiciary includes a fine of over three billion euros, imposed due to alleged violations of anti-money laundering processes related to cryptocurrencies. With this penalty and other conditions, Binance can continue operating in the USA, despite accusations against its co-founder Zhao in relation to money laundering cases.
The fine imposed on Binance for alleged money laundering activities involving cryptocurrencies is part of a growing trend by US authorities to impose stricter regulations on digital currency platforms, as evidenced by the recent fraud conviction of FTX's Sam Bankman-Fried in the USA.
Source: www.ntv.de
