The New York Times has reported that Binance, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, and its Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Changpeng Zhao, are facing allegations of violating US securities rules. The allegations were made in a federal court filing by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which alleges that Binance has been operating an unregistered stock exchange.
Binance is facing legal heat
In addition, the SEC accused the exchange of mishandling customer funds and lying to regulators and investors about its operations. The charges include secretly commingling “billions of dollars” in customer funds and sending them to a separate company controlled by Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, as well as misleading investors about the adequacy of its systems to detect and monitor manipulative trade. Regulators also accuse Binance of not sufficiently restricting US investors from accessing its unregulated exchange.
In addition, the SEC has filed 13 charges against Binance and Zhao, known as “CZ” in the crypto world. The regulator’s action comes just over a month after the Commodity Futures Trading Commission filed its civil action against Binance and Zhao. Gurbir S. Grewal, Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement, stated:
We allege that Zhao and the Binance entities not only knew the rules of the road, but also knowingly chose to circumvent them and put their customers and investors at risk.
Changpeng Zhao quickly answered to the SEC’s recent complaint against the company, which states that its team is working to ensure its systems remain stable, including withdrawals and deposits. He also noted that the company has not yet seen the complaint and that the media has access to the information before Binance does.
In previous months, Binance denied these allegations, stating that the company “takes its legal obligations very seriously and engages with regulators and law enforcement in a collaborative manner.”
At this point, it remains to be seen how the SEC complaint will affect the exchange’s operations and reputation. However, Zhao’s statement suggests the company is taking the matter seriously and is committed to working with regulators to resolve any concerns it may have.
BNB crashes after SEC complaint on 1-day chart. Source: BNBUSDT on TradingView.com
Featured image from iStock, graphic from TradingView.com
