Benzinga – In the wake of a $4.3 billion settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Binance‘s recently appointed CEO, Richard Teng, has declared the company’s evolution past its previous cultural issues.
What Happened: Previously, the DOJ had criticized Binance for its “act first, apologize later” approach. Teng acknowledged these issues during his address at the Paris Blockchain Week crypto conference.
“In those very early stages of development … Binance was operating in a different fashion,” he said.
“But we have moved past that, as the company moved into regulatory maturity, [and] we are moving toward sustainability.”
In November, Binance consented to pay a $4.3 billion settlement to the U.S. government, which included a $2.5 billion forfeiture and a $1.8 billion fine.
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Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao was charged with violating the Bank Secrecy Act and agreed to step down. This plea deal marked the end of a prolonged investigation into the crypto exchange. The DOJ alleged that Zhao had prioritized Binance’s growth over compliance with U.S. law.
The U.S. authorities also accused Binance of facilitating transactions between U.S. users and users in jurisdictions subject to U.S. sanctions.
Why It Matters: Binance faced serious tax evasion allegations in multiple jurisdictions. Despite these issues, Binance continued to launch new initiatives, such as an exclusive airdrop with the BTC L2 project BEVM.
Interestingly, despite the hefty fines, former CEO Zhao has managed to retain his position on Forbes’s Richest Crypto Billionaire List, amassing over $33 billion from Binance.
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