David Canellis

Crypto is full of divisive figures, but Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao is right up there.&nbsp;



He’s <a href="https://fortune.com/crypto/2019/11/27/crypto-needs-journalists-more-than-it-wants-to-admit/">threatened</a> to sue journalists, airdropped crypto to earthquake victims in <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/62aa9940-89ae-4f7d-9e62-380a11de8a68">lieu</a> of food or aid, and even once <a href="https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2019/05/08/binance-considered-pushing-for-bitcoin-rollback-following-40-million-hack/">suggested</a> rolling back the Bitcoin blockchain to undo a $40 million hack on his exchange.&nbsp;



Or should I say, was right up there. The <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/doj-indictment-binance-changpeng-zhao">US muzzled Zhao</a> with money laundering and sanctions violations last week.&nbsp;



But like a monk shedding himself of worldly possessions before attaining enlightenment, crypto as an “industry” could probably do without quite as many cults of personality.&nbsp;



And what better way than to remove one of the largest personalities than with a court order?



The Department of Justice’s <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/binance-changpeng-zhao-deal-unpacked">case against Binance and CZ</a> in particular is ironclad. Last week’s plea deal forced Zhao to resign as Binance CEO —&nbsp;a position he has with an iron grip held since founding the company in 2017— and he now could face up to 18 months in prison. <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/binance-changpeng-zhao-us">CZ also has to stay in the US</a>, rather than return to his home in Dubai until his sentencing hearing early next year.



Read more: <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/binance-changpeng-zhao-deal-unpacked">Here are the details of Binance and Changpeng Zhao’s plea deal</a>



Part of the deal was that Zhao and Binance agreed to never even hint that they weren’t responsible for their crimes — a shame, as that would’ve played incredibly well on X, a platform that CZ cares so much about he even invested in it with Elon Musk.



A much tamer successor in traditional finance veteran, Richard Teng, has <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/changpeng-zhao-announces-resignation-binance">taken over as Binance CEO</a>. Teng has never threatened to sue journalists on a social media platform.



That’s not to say that Teng isn’t qualified to run a crypto exchange. Even before Binance Singapore, Teng spent 13 years at the nation’s central bank and another six as head honcho at Abu Dhabi’s financial center.&nbsp;



Binance has more hoops ahead of it than a Border Collie at Crufts, and Teng is exactly the kind of agility instructor required to navigate that mess. But Zhao had represented a very particular breed of crypto entrepreneur, one that drives critics up the wall.&nbsp;



Big Tech has characters like Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk: They relentlessly believe that what they and their companies do makes the world a better place. The spin makes them easy targets, as their salesmanship resembles out-of-touch naivete.&nbsp;



Meta isn’t exploiting our brain chemistry to undermine social discourse — it&#8217;s a bastion of free speech that brings us all together.&nbsp;



Amazon fulfillment centers aren’t soulless symptoms of late-stage capitalism — they’re fun <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/aug/17/jeff-bezos-amazon-working-practices">places</a> full of people “helping invent the future.”&nbsp;



And Elon Musk’s Neuralink isn’t a grisly horror show ripped from the Twilight Zone — it’s a <a href="https://fortune.com/2023/11/30/elon-musk-neuralink-paradise-never-caused-death-monkeyall-terminal-conditions/">paradise</a> for terminally-ill monkeys complete with playground equipment and TVs.



Zhao was just as painfully stubborn about <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/binance'">Binance</a>. The platform isn’t an opportunistic hotbed of low quality cryptocurrencies with illiquid markets prone to manipulation — it’s a charitable smorgasbord of blockchain innovation totally free of shitcoins (and securities).



<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">We don&#39;t list shitcoins even if they pay 400 or 4,000 BTC. ETH/NEO/XRP/EOS/XMR/LTC/more listed with no fee. Question is not “how much does Binance charge to list?” but “is my coin good enough?” It’s not the fee, it&#39;s your project! Focus on your own project!&mdash; CZ 🔶 BNB (@cz_binance) <a href="https://twitter.com/cz_binance/status/1028190371719786496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 11, 2018</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
</div></figure>



Toeing the company line seemed easy for Zhao. Like most entrepreneur influencers, much of his online persona revolves around the toxic positivity typical of founders and venture capitalists, alongside dog whistles for crypto diehards: Dips are when diamond hands are tested, and when in doubt, zoom out on the chart. And then there’s the whole “4” <a href="https://twitter.com/cz_binance/status/1610018096122851328">thing</a>.&nbsp;



Where spiritual gurus would light some sage or chant a mantra to cleanse their chakras of negative energy, Zhao zealots would shoo away bad vibes with a very special brand of shitposting. Just the number “4,” representing the fourth of Zhao’s 2023 resolutions: “Ignore FUD (fear uncertainty and doubt), fake news, attacks, etc.”&nbsp;



(Education, compliance and product and service were the first three).



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/gTKZakhxNqh68PWJxTWFlMRVwh1hqAQeq3g-XyrJVfWWEWlHq5s9gGwciMlnlGtLERbClslD3B0E6BA3FlbmJ-H8NxScJzOHul4M0tCSaegL0R2edfQYFbGjMbOzdzUyqr5j8WSzbGktLPARNB7PtLI" alt=""/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Six years at Binance vs. <a href="https://twitter.com/_RichardTeng/status/1730557791822086607">first week</a> as Binance CEO&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>



Teng’s incredibly formal demeanor as compared to Zhao is so noticeable that he was asked about it on a recent Twitter Spaces, his first as CEO.



“Yes and no. I do think that certain things do require certain seriousness in terms of level of communication, because you’re talking about serious matters, especially on matters relating to protection of users, for example, security of users when you talk to the regulators,” Teng said.



He continued: “So I adopt a slightly different mode of communication for different channels. And they&#8217;ll be very informal channels of communication as well. So I think, keep [those posts coming].”



So, Teng will very likely be far less interesting to follow, or cheer for, or even hate-follow from afar. It hasn’t been long, and it’s doubtful he’ll attract a cult following like Zhao. But that’s okay.



Maybe crypto needs less cartoonish ringmasters and more sensible suits who show real discomfort for <a href="https://ofac.treasury.gov/system/files/2023-11/20231121_binance.pdf">servicing</a> the worst of the worst for the sake of profits.



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<div class="wp-block-post-author-biography">David is an Editor based in the Netherlands focused on data-driven journalism. Previously, he wrote for TheNextWeb&#8217;s crypto vertical before launching Protos in 2021. He&#8217;s a reformed hardline Bitcoiner passionate about permissionless and decentralized networks. Contact David at david@blockworks.co</div>


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The US watered down crypto when it ousted Binance’s Zhao — and that’s okay

Ben Strack

A federal judge wants Binance founder Changpeng Zhao to stay in the US as he awaits sentencing. At least for now.



Zhao and the exchange he founded pleaded guilty to violating US anti-money laundering laws last week.&nbsp;



The US Department of Justice <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/binance-settlement-message-to-crypto-industry">detailed $4.3 billion in fines and forfeitures</a> for Binance during a Nov. 21 press conference. Attorney General Merrick Garland alleged at the time that the company’s compliance team knew the exchange was used for money laundering and illicit financial activities.&nbsp;



Zhao was released on a $175 million bail bond and is slated to be sentenced in February. He is a citizen of the United Arab Emirates and Canada.



Magistrate Judge Brian Tsuchida proposed allowing Zhao to return to the UAE to be with his partner and three children prior to sentencing — finding he was at “no risk of flight,” according to a Nov. 23 court <a href="https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/legaldocs/dwpkawagrpm/11242023zhao_defense.pdf">filing</a>.



Read more: <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/binance-changpeng-zhao-deal-unpacked">Here are the details of Binance and Changpeng Zhao’s plea deal</a>



But US District Judge Richard Jones put a pause on Zhao’s return to the UAE “until such time as this court resolves the government’s motion for review,&#8221; according to a Monday <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.wawd.328570/gov.uscourts.wawd.328570.42.0.pdf">disclosure</a>. 



The <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/binance">Binance</a> founder, as part of pleading guilty, agreed to step down from the company’s CEO post — <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/changpeng-zhao-announces-resignation-binance">naming Richard Teng as his successor</a>. Teng was Binance’s head of regional markets and previously spent time in regulatory roles at the Abu Dhabi Global Market and the Monetary Authority of Singapore.



Teng claimed in a blog <a href="https://www.binance.com/en/blog/from-our-ceo/my-first-blog-as-binances-ceo-2887294642016890803?ref=AZTKZ9XS&amp;utm_source=RichardTwitter&amp;utm_medium=GlobalSocial&amp;utm_campaign=GlobalSocial">post</a> Monday that Binance is “stronger today than we have ever been.” He doubled down on previous <a href="https://twitter.com/_RichardTeng/status/1727214060406808920?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1727214060406808920%7Ctwgr%5E50743ffb1242a01c516ed19cf0c8af6d809321d3%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fblockworks.co%2Fnews%2Fbinance-outflows-stabilize">comments</a> he made on X that the company maintains “robust revenues and profits” and that user assets are backed one-to-one.



“As an industry, we require more focus than ever on collaborating with policymakers,” Teng wrote. “Only then may we effectively contribute to the development of a globally harmonized regulatory framework that will foster innovation while providing critical consumer protections.”



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Binance’s Zhao ordered to stay in US for now

Katherine Ross

Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao announced his resignation from the cryptocurrency exchange in a post on X.



The news of the resignation itself is not new, following the publishing of the <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/doj-indictment-binance-changpeng-zhao">Binance plea deal by the Department of Justice earlier today</a>. As part of the deal, he was barred from maintaining a role at the company for a period of three years.



“Today, I stepped down as CEO of Binance. Admittedly, it was not easy to let go emotionally. But I know it is the right thing to do. I made mistakes, and I must take responsibility. This is best for our community, for Binance, and for myself,” Zhao <a href="https://twitter.com/cz_binance/status/1727063503125766367">said</a>.



Richard Teng, currently serving as Binance’s head of regional markets, will take over as CEO, according to Zhao. Teng has served in regulatory positions in the past, including stints at the Abu Dhabi Global Market and the Monetary Authority of Singapore.



Teng, in a post on X, said that he will reassure investors that they “can remain confident in the financial strength, security and safety of the company,” and collaborate with regulators as well as “working with partners to drive growth and adoption of Web3.”



<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">It is an honour and with the deepest humility that I step into the role of Binance’s new CEO. We operate the world&#39;s largest cryptocurrency exchange by volume. The trust placed on us by our 150m users and thousands of employees is a responsibility that I take seriously and hold…&mdash; Richard Teng (@_RichardTeng) <a href="https://twitter.com/_RichardTeng/status/1727066202047164562?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 21, 2023</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
</div></figure>



As part of this week’s settlement, Zhao has agreed to plead guilty to “violating and causing a financial institution to violate” the Bank Secrecy Act.&nbsp;



Zhao will pay a fine of $50 million, though the “government agrees to credit the Recommended Fine against the amount the Defendant pays to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission” in his CFTC suit resolution.



The <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/binance-changpeng-zhao-deal-unpacked">plea agreements for both Binance and Zhao</a>, according to the DOJ “were negotiated in tandem and are designed to address complex questions about future monitoring and compliance, as well as the ongoing roles of Binance and Zhao in the cryptocurrency industry.”



Zhao said that he’ll “take a break” following his resignation.&nbsp;



“After that, my current thinking is I will probably do some passive investing, being a minority token/shareholder in startups in areas of blockchain/Web3/DeFi, AI and biotech. I am happy that I will finally have more time to spend looking at DeFi,” he continued.



He also noted that the US agencies involved — the DOJ, CFTC and the Treasury — “do not allege that Binance misappropriated any user funds” and “do not allege that Binance engaged in any market manipulation.”



The Securities and Exchange Commission, in a separate suit, has <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/sec-allegations-against-binance">accused Binance of commingling funds</a>. The SEC did not take part in the settlements, according to court documents.



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Changpeng Zhao names Richard Teng as new Binance CEO

Macauley Peterson

<div id="highlights-block_61b72713fea8d" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>Binance.sg will shut down on Feb. 13, as Binance Asia will refocus activities in the city-state on its recent investment in regulated exchange HGX</li>
 <li>Binance’s CEO, Changpeng Zhao, says the Binance Asia application for payment services licensing in Singapore was made “somewhat redundant”</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



The world’s largest digital asset exchange by volume, Binance, has been making moves to increase regulatory compliance for much of the past year. In June, Binance added a Singaporean subsidiary, Binance Pte, as it awaited licensing review from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Blockworks <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/binance-continues-to-plant-seeds-for-singapore-move/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">previously reported</a>. The company now is shifting its focus to a MAS-regulated exchange in which Binance took an 18% stake last week.



According to <a href="https://binancesingapore.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/4416402912525-Announcement-to-all-Binance-sg-users" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">an announcement posted</a> to Binance.sg, the Singapore brand is slated to wind down early next year:



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">“Binance Asia Services Pte Ltd (BAS) intends to withdraw its licensing efforts in Singapore and wind down its digital payment token (“DPT”) services in Singapore by 13 February 2022.  The decision has not been made lightly, and we apologize in advance for any inconvenience this may cause.”</blockquote>



The announcement further states that Binance.sg has halted user registrations, KYC processes, and both crypto and fiat deposits. Trading will continue only through Jan. 12, 2022, after which users will have one month to withdraw their assets before all accounts will be closed.



Binance’s CEO, Changpeng Zhao, <a href="https://twitter.com/cz_binance/status/1470294674728689664" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">took to Twitter</a> Monday morning to clarify that the license application withdrawal was due Binance’s investment in Singaporean exchange, HGX.



“This investment made our own application somewhat redundant. We will continue to work through our partners to grow the crypto industry in Singapore,” he wrote.



Richard Teng, who was appointed CEO of BAS in June, was previously the <a href="https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/private-exchange-hgx-begins-trading" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">chairman at HGX</a> and spent 13 years at the Monetary Authority of Singapore <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-teng-3497b527/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">before that</a>.



“In Singapore, we continue to work closely with key government agencies to support the growth of the blockchain ecosystem and development of requisite local talent needed,” Mr Teng told <a href="https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/binance-acquires-18-stake-in-singapore-regulated-hg-exchange" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Straits Times</a>.



A Binance Asia spokesperson was not immediately available for comment.



Binance Coin (BNB) is trading about 3.4% lower since the announcement.




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Binance Asia Will End Service in Singapore

Sam Reynolds

<div id="highlights-block_619cb0d210858" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>Binance has registered a fourth entity in Ireland, according to a corporate filing spotted by The Independent</li>
 <li>For some time it looked as if Binance would call Singapore home base, but relations have soured between the company and the Monetary Authority of Singapore</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



It looks as if Ireland will be the new home for Binance. The exchange, which until recently was famously decentralized, has registered a new entity in Ireland — first spotted by <a href="https://www.independent.ie/business/irish/cryptocurrency-exchange-binance-steps-up-plans-for-hq-in-ireland-41079314.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Independent</a>. 



Binance Exchange (Ie), the new entity, is believed to be poised to serve as the corporate “mothership” and not a technology licensing holding company or a regional subsidiary.&nbsp;



In an <a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/binance-ceo-says-ireland-is-part-its-hq-plans-2021-10-07/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">interview with Retuers in October</a>, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao said that the company was considering Ireland as a headquarters, along with France, according to an interview with French newspaper <a href="https://www.lesechos.fr/finance-marches/marches-financiers/binance-le-patron-de-la-plus-grande-plateforme-de-cryptos-mondiale-explique-sa-strategie-aux-echos-1362803" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Les Echos</a>, and another unnamed European city. 



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">&#8220;When we first started we wanted to embrace the decentralized principles, no headquarters, work all around the world, no borders,&#8221; he said to Reuters. &#8220;It&#8217;s very clear now, to run a centralized exchange, you need a centralized, legal entity structure behind it.&#8221;</blockquote>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Why not Singapore?</h3>



As Binance began its existence in Asia, it was thought that it would try to maintain its headquarters there. Given <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/hong-kong-and-singapore-take-different-approaches-to-regulating-digital-assets/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Singapore’s crypto-friendly</a> nature, the city-state would be a logical choice to host the exchange’s headquarters. In August, it announced that it had hired Singapore Exchange executive Richard Teng as CEO of Binance Asia Services Pte, a company it registered in Singapore in 2018.



“Singapore is widely considered to be the blue-chip destination for financial and regulatory security and oversight,” Michael Conn, CEO of Singapore-based Zilliqa Capital, told Blockworks in an earlier interview. “Setting up their business in Singapore will make it much easier for Binance to pursue a traditional equity raise, since Singapore is not seen as a tax haven or a place for shady dealings.”&nbsp;



However, Binance poisoned the well in early September by running afoul of the Monetary Authority of Singapore which alleged the exchange — a different entity entirely from its Binance.sg subsidiary —&nbsp; was in violation of the Payment Services Act for carrying on the business of providing payment services to, and soliciting such business from Singapore residents without an appropriate license.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">First a headquarters, then a sovereign wealth fund</h3>



Zhao’s vision for Binance includes an IPO and investment from the world’s largest institutional investors. But for that to happen, there needs to be a headquarters, which is something he’s also admitted.&nbsp;



In a recent interview with the <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/006b727a-cc20-403e-ad53-6a23571e6c1c" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Financial Times</a>, Zhao has said Binance is in talks with sovereign wealth funds about investment in the exchange. 



Speaking with the paper, Zhao said that investment from these funds would improve the exchange’s “perception and relationships” with various regulators around the world.



“But it may also tie us to specific countries&#8230;which we want to be slightly careful with,” he also said.  Binance’s BNB token appears to be unaffected by the news and, at time of publication, is up 0.2% on the day according to <a href="https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/binance-coin" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CoinGecko</a>.