changpeng Zhao, the founder and CEO of Binance, resigned from his position and pleaded guilty to violating US anti-money laundering laws. This move comes as part of a historic $4.3 billion settlement to resolve a long-running investigation into Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange.
The settlement, one of the largest corporate penalties in US history, includes a personal payment of $50 million from Zhao. Prosecutors detailed Binance's breach of US anti-money laundering and sanctions laws, revealing the failure to report over 100,000 suspicious transactions involving organizations categorized by the US as terrorist groups, including Hamas, al Qaeda, and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.
The fallout from the settlement marks another significant blow to the cryptocurrency industry, which has faced increasing scrutiny and investigations.
Who is Changpeng Zhao?
Changpeng Zhao, commonly known as CZ, is a Chinese-Canadian business executive and the founder of Binance, one of the world's largest cryptocurrency exchanges. Zhao started his career in the financial industry, working at various companies including Bloomberg Tradebook, Fusion Systems, and others. He became involved in the cryptocurrency space in 2013, working on various projects related to blockchain and cryptocurrency