Binance
founder
Changpeng
Zhao
will
find
out
today
how
much
jail
time
he’ll
serve
for
breaking
US
money
laundering
laws
— if
he
serves
any
at
all.
Prosecutors
have
requested
three
years
of
prison
time,
double
the
sentencing
guideline
of
18
months,
because
the
“scope
and
ramifications
of
Zhao’s
misconduct
were
massive,”
they
wrote
in
their
sentencing
memo.
Zhao’s
lawyers,
in
their
own
sentencing
memo,
said
that
Zhao
deserved
no
jail
time,
as
“no
defendant
in
a
remotely
similar
BSA
[Bank
Secrecy
Act]
case
has
ever
been
sentenced
to
incarceration.”
Zhao
pleaded
guilty
and
stepped
down
from
Binance
as
part
of
a
settlement
with
the
US
Department
of
Justice
in
November.
Additionally,
Binance
agreed
to
pay
$4.3
billion
in
fines.
As
part
of
the
agreement,
Zhao
has
waived
the
right
to
appeal
any
sentence
up
to
18
months
in
prison.
He
also
agreed
to
pay
a
fine
of
$50
million,
a
drop
in
the
bucket
compared
to
his
estimated
$33
billion
fortune.
According
to
the
US
government,
Binance
knowingly
evaded
anti-money
laundering
regulations.
As
a
result,
Iranian,
Cuban,
and
Syrian
customers
were
able
to
transact
in
violation
of
US
sanctions.
Settlements
with
the
CFTC
and
SEC
were
announced
at
the
same
time
as
Zhao’s
guilty
plea.
I’m
here
in
Seattle
for
the
sentencing.
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