Binance to pay billions in US in money laundering case, CEO resigns

WASHINGTON: Binance chief executive Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty Tuesday to US money laundering violations, in a deal that will see the cryptocurrency exchange he founded pay over $4 billion in penalties.

“Binance became the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange in part because of the crimes it committed — now it is paying one of the largest corporate penalties in US history,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.

Binance’s guilty plea is part of coordinated action including with the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network and Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the Department of Justice said.

Zhao pleaded guilty to failing to maintain an effective anti-money laundering program, the Department of Justice said, and he has resigned from his position of CEO.

Zhao, who is Canadian and lives abroad, entered his plea in person in the United States, added Garland.

Court documents showed Zhao agreed to pay a $50 million fine as part of the plea.

Binance’s agreements with the Treasury Department’s agencies include a civil money penalty of $3.4 billion and a $968 million penalty involving OFAC. These mark the agencies’ largest settlements in history.