The US government has reached a settlement with the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange worth more than $4 billion
By means ofERIC TUCKER Associated Press And LINDSAY WHITEHURST Associated Press
November 21, 2023, 12:27 PM
WASHINGTON — The U.S. government has reached a settlement with the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange worth more than $4 billion, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
The settlement with Binance was confirmed on condition of anonymity ahead of an expected announcement. The value of the settlement was first reported by Bloomberg.
It comes months after the company was accused of operating as an unregistered securities exchange and violating a slew of U.S. securities laws in a lawsuit from regulators.
Binance is a Cayman Islands limited liability company founded by CEO Changpeng Zhao. The allegations were similar to practices that came to light following the collapse of the second-largest cryptocurrency exchange, FTX, last year.
Zhao has also faced accusations of diverting customer funds, concealing the fact that the company was commingling billions of dollars in investor assets and sending them to a third party that Zhao also owned.
At the time the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed charges against the company, Binance said it had cooperated with the investigation, but said the agency “chose to act unilaterally and litigate.”
The cryptocurrency industry has been marred by scandals and market collapses. Sam Bankman-Fried, the 31-year-old founder of the failed cryptocurrency brokerage, was convicted of fraud earlier this month for stealing at least $10 billion from customers and investors.
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Associated Press writer Fatima Hussein contributed to this story.