Breaking: Binance CEO Resigns as Part of DOJ Settlement; Pleads Guilty

Binance CEO, Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao has resigned from the exchange as part of the settlement the trading platform is exploring with the United States Department of Justice (DOJ).

Binance Settlement still in View

The broader digital currency ecosystem is currently on edge following news that the DOJ is set to make multiple crypto-related announcements. While the speculations are currently through the roof, one of the possibilities has been manifested with the resignation according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.

In addition to the resignation, the iconic crypto personality also pleaded guilty to violating US anti-money laundering rules.

As the market awaited the $4 billion announcement from the DOJ, a Forbes source claimed the settlement will be between the DOJ, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and Binance. The proposed settlement deal will not involve the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the regulator that accused Binance of operating as an unregistered securities and clearing platform.

There are currently many speculations regarding the proposed settlement. While it is yet to be seen whether or not Binance will pay the exact $4 billion the DOJ demanded, market experts currently postulate that the settlement, irrespective of the amount, might be one of the biggest in the broader financial ecosystem.

The DOJ has been investigating Binance Exchange since 2018 as the agency sought to know whether the exchange flouted Know-Your-Customer and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) rules to permit sanctioned individuals to access its platform. 

If a settlement is successfully reached, it may mark a milestone for the industry and possibly send the price of assets higher. Many coins including Bitcoin (BTC), Binance Coin (BNB), and Ethereum (ETH) rallied when the news of the settlement was first made public.

Settlement Becoming the Norm

Over the past 2 years, a trend has been brewing in the crypto ecosystem whereby trading platforms get to settle charges with regulators ranging from DOJ, the SEC and the CFTC.

Kraken is one of the firms that paid $30 million to the SEC earlier this year to settle a lawsuit that alleged it operated its staking product as an unregistered security. The exchange has been sued for the second time in a case that is similar to the case the markets regulator has against Binance and Coinbase respectively.

As part of the settlement trend, the SEC is reportedly requesting over $700 million from Ripple Labs for selling XRP to institutional investors. Crypto lawyers believe the final settlement will be a fraction of this sum.