Top Executives Leaving Binance.US A Month After SEC Lawsuit, Market Under Pressure

The latest report in the crypto town is that the top executives from Binance.US have been leaving the organization. Interestingly, the development comes just one month after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) slapped a lawsuit on the exchange for violating securities laws.

Binance’s chief strategy, Patrick Hillmann, who joined back in 2021, tweeted that he’s leaving the office on “good terms”. A source familiar with the matter also stated that Steven Christie, senior vice president for compliance, and Hon Ng, general counsel, have also left. Eleanor Hughes will take the role of the new general counsel at Binance.US, said the source.

According to information from LinkedIn, Binance had around 600 employees in the US. In June, during midyear performance reviews, some of these employees were asked if they would be willing to move to a different location. Those who declined were reportedly let go from their positions. As per the source, Binance’s chief business officer Yibo Ling has left the company’s US office.

CZ Calls Binance.US Departures A FUD

Binance chief Changpeng Zhao has called the news under the latest departures as “FUD”, an acronym for fear, unrest, and doubt. CZ called it a normal “turnover” at the exchange adding that this is not the aftermath of the SEC action.

“As markets and the global environment for crypto changes, as our organization evolves, and as personal situations change, there is turnover at every company. We thank all of our ex-team members for their contributions to our growth, and wish them all the best. We continue to BUILD, and continue to hire,” he added.

Binance has been facing major regulatory probes across the globe. Last month, the US SEC slapped a lawsuit on the exchange for mishandling customer funds. Earlier this week, the Australian regulator ASIC searched the offices of the exchange in their ongoing derivatives probe.

In the last 24 hours, the broader cryptocurrency market has come a bit under selling pressure. The Bitcoin (BTC) price has dropped by 1.43% but continues to hold just above $30,000.