A US district court has changed the bail conditions for Binance cryptocurrency exchange founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) and ordered him to surrender his Canadian passport. Thus, the request of the Ministry of Justice was satisfied, writes WSJ.
Judge Richard A. Jones previously officially banned the entrepreneur to leave the United States until a verdict is rendered in his case. In November 2023, CZ pleaded guilty to violating the Bank Secrecy Act and agreed to pay a fine. Soon after, Zhao was released on bail of $175 million.
The court has now ordered CZ to surrender all valid and expired passports. The entrepreneur must transfer the documents to a trusted person who will be hired by his lawyers. This person will accompany the former head of Binance on all trips where a passport may be needed.
In addition, Changpeng Zhao cannot issue new documents without the permission of the court. He is also obliged to notify the relevant services of his movements.
Earlier it became known that the date of sentencing in the CZ case was postponed to April 30, 2024. The trial was supposed to take place at the end of last month, but it was postponed for unknown reasons. Zhao's lawyers declined to comment on the information.
The entrepreneur faces up to 18 months in prison. According to former employee of the US Securities and Exchange Commission John Reed Stark, representatives of the Ministry of Justice will insist on a more severe punishment.
Source: Cryptocurrency
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