The Department of Justice is seeking $4 billion from the world’s biggest crypto exchange Binance to settle its ongoing investigation into the company’s alleged years-long criminal activity, including money laundering and fraud, according to published reports.
The deal would allow Binance to continue operations, Bloomberg News reported.
The negotiations include the possibility that CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao would face criminal charges in the U.S., according to the report.
Some pundits, however, doubt Zhao’s or the company’s willingness to settle in the face of federal charges.
“I could be wrong, but I strongly doubt that Binance is going to pay $4 billion to the United States before an Indictment,” Joe Carlasare, a commercial litigator and professed crypto afficianado predicted on X.
Neither Binance nor the SEC immediately returned requests for comment.
An announcement could come before the end of the month, although Bloomberg said the situation “remains fluid.”
The company has been in the Justice Department’s crosshairs since at least 2018, Reuters reported. Federal prosecutors are alleged to have requested internal records on the firm’s anti-money laundering policies and Zhao’s internal communications in 2020, the wire service said.
Binance is also being investigated by the Justice Department over allegations the firm allowed Russian users to evade international sanctions following the launch of the Russian-Ukraine war. The sanctions are designed to reduce the Kremlin’s ability to finance the war, diminish its economic base and “impose clear economic and political costs on Russia’s political elite,” according to the U.S. State Department.
On June 15, the SEC filed 13 charges against Binance, affiliated companies and Zaho for allegedly operating unregistered exchanges, broker-dealers and clearing services.
Bitcoin rose 1% and Binance’s token, BNB, surged 7.1% mid-day on the news of a potential settlement and a possible end to the threat that the world’s largest crypto exchange will be put out business, according to CoinGecko.
