Binance has hidden “significant” ties to China for years

Binancethe biggest platform cryptocurrencies of the world, for several years hid “significant” connections with Chinadespite assurances that it has shut down its operations in the country, the newspaper revealed on Wednesday Financial Times (FT) from internal company documents.

CEO, Changpeng Zhaoand other managers repeatedly ordered their employees to hide Binance’s presence in China, including the existence of an office that was in use until at least the end of 2019.

Binance also covered up its continued use of the services of a Chinese bank to pay the salaries of some of its employees.

In 2017, facing pressure from the Beijing government on the cryptocurrency industry, Zhao emphasized in an internal message that “people in China can directly say that our offices are not in China.”

Two years later, before the information in the media that ensured it Binance opened an office in an Asian country, the message to employees emphasized: «Reminder: publicly, we have offices in Malta, Singapore and Uganda. Please do not confirm offices in any other location, including China.”

In a statement sent to the FT, the company regrets that the newspaper uses “sources that go back to ancient history (in terms of the cryptocurrency market)” and ensures that their information “dramatically mischaracterizes the facts”.

This week, U.S. authorities that regulate the futures and options markets filed a lawsuit against Binance, alleging that the company committed “numerous violations” of the country’s financial regulations.