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Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has admitted to violating US money laundering laws and will pay billions of dollars in fines. Founder and boss Changpeng Zhao, 46, also known by the acronym CZ, must leave the company for three years, according to court documents released on Tuesday. He will also pay $50 million. In total, approximately $4.3 billion (3.8 billion francs) will be paid to Binance. Binance is the largest trading platform for trading cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, among others.
Zhao wrote on the online platform X that he no longer sees himself as the head of a start-up in the future. Richard Teng, who was previously responsible for local markets, will take over as president of Binance.
Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies briefly fell after the deal was announced but stabilized at a daily loss of around five percent.
heavy penalty
After years of investigation, the US justice system accused Binance and Zhao of being active in evading money laundering and sanctions laws. This enabled questionable payments worth millions of dollars. According to the prosecution, Zhao instructed Binance employees to contact US customers by phone, among other things, to avoid leaving any traces.
US Attorney General Merrick Garland (71) said Binance became the world’s largest cryptocurrency platform by committing “crimes”, among other things. “He is now paying one of the largest corporate penalties in U.S. history.”
Finance Minister Janet Yellen (77) announced that the platform will be subject to a five-year audit in addition to a billion-dollar fine. Yellen spoke of “a turning point for the digital currency industry.”
Misuse of customer funds is prohibited
A year ago Binance’s biggest rival, FTX, collapsed, and a few weeks ago FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried was found guilty of fraud by a jury in a sensational trial in New York. US investigators managed to convince them that Bankman-Fried was secretly diverting client money to his own hedge fund.
Zhao emphasized that US authorities are not accusing Binance of embezzling customer funds or manipulating markets.
Zhao founded Binance in China in 2017 and grew it into the world’s largest cryptocurrency platform. The Chinese-born entrepreneur, who has Canadian citizenship, has become a billionaire and was recently seen as the biggest rival of Sam Bankman-Fried, 31, the founder of the FTX platform, which went bankrupt a year ago. Sam Bankman-Fried was recently convicted of fraud. in the USA. (SDA/AFP/cut)
Source :Blick
I’m Tim David and I work as an author for 24 Instant News, covering the Market section. With a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism, my mission is to provide accurate, timely and insightful news coverage that helps our readers stay informed about the latest trends in the market. My writing style is focused on making complex economic topics easy to understand for everyone.
