Founder and former CEO of Binance Changpeng Zhao (CZ) must spend 36 months in prison after pleading guilty to violating anti-money laundering laws. This is stated in the petition of the US Attorney's Office, writes Reuters.
Federal standards provide for a maximum sentence of 18 months in prison in Zhao’s case, the publication recalled. Prosecutors previously announced their intention to achieve a harsher sentence, with a maximum sentence of 10 years.
In November 2023, CZ pleaded guilty to failing to maintain an effective anti-money laundering program at Binance as the head of the company.
As part of an agreement with the US Department of Justice, he agreed to pay a fine of $50 million and resign from his position as CEO. For the exchange, the settlement amount was $4.3 billion.
On April 30, a court hearing will be held at which a punishment will be chosen for the ex-CEO of Binance.
Until his sentencing, Zhao remains free, for which he posted bail of $175 million. Prosecutors demanded that the former head of the platform be prohibited from leaving the United States for fear of escape. They cited significant wealth outside the country and minimal ties to the United States as risks.
CZ's lawyers challenged the travel ban, but the court sided with law enforcement officers. In December, the court rejected the entrepreneur’s request to return home to the UAE, despite the proposed bail of $4.5 billion.
In April, Forbes estimated the fortune of the ex-head of Binance at $33 billion and placed him at 50th place in the ranking of billionaires.
Richard Teng, head of regional markets, replaced Zhao as CEO of the exchange.
Earlier, the co-founder of the platform and head of the venture capital company Binance Labs, Yi He, reported a “positive situation” with CZ.
Source: Cryptocurrency
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