Prison sentence for founder of famous crypto exchange
Changpeng Zhao, the top executive of the cryptocurrency exchange Binance, had resigned after reaching a deal with the U.S. government. A new development has occurred in Zhao's ongoing case.
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Zhao, known as "CZ" and considered the most powerful person in the crypto sector, faced prosecutors who requested a 3-year prison sentence for him in the criminal case heard at the Seattle Federal Court to serve as a deterrent, while defense attorneys requested 5 months of probation.
Zhao's lawyers argued that the former CEO had accepted his mistake, came to the U.S. voluntarily, had not previously violated laws, and had cooperated.
Zhao was sentenced to 4 months in prison for "failing to provide adequate protection against money laundering."
WHAT HAPPENED?
In November of last year, the U.S. government fined the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, 4.3 billion dollars for violating anti-money laundering and sanctions laws. The fine in question was one of the largest ever imposed in the country.
Zhao had reached an agreement with the U.S. government to resolve the investigation into Binance.
Born in China and having immigrated to Canada at the age of 12, Zhao had agreed to resign and pay a 50 million dollar fine as part of the deal.
Zhao also stated in a post on his X account that he had made mistakes and needed to take responsibility.
Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder and former CEO of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX, was also sentenced to 25 years in prison in April in a criminal case where he was tried on charges of fraud and money laundering.