US prosecutors split over charges against cryptocurrency exchange ``Binance'' and its executives for money laundering and sanctions violations, discussing possible plea deal
Some prosecutors from the U.S. Department of Justice, who have been investigating virtual currency exchange Binance for suspected money laundering, tax evasion, and sanctions violations since 2018, believe there is sufficient evidence to prosecute Binance and its executives. I found out that However, opinions are reportedly split between prosecutors who think the evidence is enough and those who want to consider more evidence.
Exclusive: US Justice Dept is split over charging Binance as crypto world falters, sources say | Reuters
Binance Is Trying to Calm Investors, but Its Finances Remain a Mystery - WSJ
https://www.wsj.com/articles/binance-is-trying-to-calm-investors-but-its-finances-remain-a-mystery-11670679351
Binance 'Finances Remain a Mystery,' Claims New Report
https://bitcoinist.com/binance-finances-remain-a-mystery-claims-new-report/
The Justice Department's Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section (MLARS), as well as investigative teams involving the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Washington and the National Crypto Enforcement Team, have been investigating Binance since 2018.・Preparations are underway to file criminal charges against Mr. Zhao and other executives.
The charges under investigation are reportedly unlicensed money transfer, money laundering conspiracy and violation of criminal sanctions. According to a person familiar with the matter, the prosecutor's office launched an investigation after a series of incidents in which criminals used Binance to transfer illicit funds. Another reason was that Binance did not comply with US financial protection regulations.
The Bank Secrecy Act, designed to protect the U.S. financial system from financial fraud, requires cryptocurrency exchanges to register with the Treasury and comply with anti-money laundering requirements if they conduct “substantial” business in the U.S. and demand that the location of the exchange and details of ownership be revealed. However, Binance rejected this and responded by establishing a US-focused exchange called Binance.US instead, focusing its attention there and drawing a line between it and the major exchanges. Reuters says there is.
It has been reported that the Justice Department has been investigating this matter for some time and is requesting to submit internal documents, and Reuters said, ``Binance neglected to check customers and escaped the eyes of regulators and exploded. Criminals were able to launder at least $2.35 billion (about 320 billion yen) of illicit funds through exchanges.' On the other hand, Binance denies that it is “nonsense”.
Binance has disputed the Reuters report, citing inaccurate calculations of illicit funds and outdated descriptions of compliance controls. Binance said it was “advancing higher industry standards and further improving our ability to detect illegal activity on our platform.”
In this report, Reuters said, 'In response to the document submission request from the Justice Department, Binance executives have said that they cannot respond because the document has already been deleted due to the confidentiality clause stipulated by CEO Zhao.' As I told you, Binance pointed out that ``Reuters is wrong again'' regarding the report that was done this time. Binance has strengthened its relationships with law enforcement agencies around the world and
A few days before the Reuters report, there were also reports that the external audit that Binance underwent was not legitimate. Auditor Mazars
A margin audit conducted by Binance showed that Binance's collateral ratio exceeded 100% and possessed sufficient reserves, but the methodology of the investigation was not clear and some figures were previously The Wall Street Journal and others report that there was a pre-agreed scenario because it was different from what was reported.
Binance also restricted some accounts for 'suspicious transactions' but lifted them after user complaints. Binance said, ``It is not considered to be an effect of account infringement,'' and continues to investigate. Regarding this matter, CEO Zhao said, ``We recognize that there is such a thing as excessive intervention in maintaining an exchange that operates in an industry centered on the concept of decentralization. And there are times when it's worth letting a similar situation go,' he added.
Based on our investigations so far, this appears to be just market behavior. One guy deposited funds and started buying. (Hackers don't deposit). Other guys followed. Can't see linkage between the accounts . /t.co/QlB1VnlHVs
— CZ ???? Binance (@cz_binance) December 11, 2022
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