The US Department of Justice is planning to ask Binance to pay a fine of $4 billion to close the investigation into this cryptocurrency exchange.
The US Department of Justice wants Binance to pay a fine of $4 billion. Photo: Reuters
According to Bloomberg sources , the US Department of Justice is negotiating with the cryptocurrency trading platform Binance about paying a fine of 4 billion USD, in exchange for which US officials will stop the investigation of the exchange.
However, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao will still be charged with criminal offenses related to bank fraud, money laundering and violating financial sanctions regulations. It is known that Mr. Zhao has been living mainly in Dubai (UAE), where there is no extradition treaty with the US.
The US Justice Department is seeking more than $4 billion from Binance as part of a proposed resolution of a years- Longing investigation into the world's largest crypto exchange https://t.co/5pwCtlVwIG
— Bloomberg (@business) November 20, 2023
Bloomberg sources said the official announcement may be announced by the US Department of Justice by the end of November, but the content is still open. The investigation is being conducted by the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Unit, the National Security Division and the Seattle District Attorney's Office of the US Department of Justice.
If Binance accepts to pay a $4 billion fine, this will be one of the largest fines in the history of the cryptocurrency industry.
The US Department of Justice believes that a $4 billion fine is appropriate for Binance to continue operating, avoiding prosecution and risking a collapse that threatens the stability of the cryptocurrency industry.
The US Department of Justice is said to have been investigating Binance since 2020 with allegations of money laundering, but so far has not issued any official indictments. At the end of 2022, it was reported that prosecutors were hesitant with the evidence they had collected, with some saying it was enough to prosecute the exchange, but the rest arguing that more evidence was still needed. .
In addition, Binance is also being sued by two other US financial regulators, the Asset Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in March 2023 and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in March. June 2023 , with serious allegations of violations in the management and listing of cryptocurrencies XEM securities.
Neither Binance nor CEO Changpeng Zhao have made any statements about the news that the US Department of Justice wants the exchange to pay a $4 billion fine to settle.
However, the price of Binance's BNB Token at one point increased more than 10% from 238 USD to 264 USD when Bloomberg 's news spread, before stabilizing at the 256 USD area.
15m chart of BNB/ USDT pair on Binance exchange at 07:50 AM on November 21, 2023
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