The U. S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington raked in a record$ 1.51 billion in charges for 2024, with global crypto exchange Binance coughing up$ 1.5 billion of that—a hefty price tag for one of the state’s biggest legal payments.
The significant amount is a component of a$ 4.3 billion fine set against Binance for serious breaches, including failing to register as a money-transferring company and violating U.S. sanctions.
According to the Wednesday speech, the city worked with the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Part of the Criminal Division and the National Security Division to make sure the company was held responsible for its behavior.
U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman stated that “our business worked closely with Department of Justice pieces on the legal case against Binance.”
As part of the colony, Binance agreed to leave the U. S. business entirely, and its co-founder CEO Changpeng Zhao, known as” CZ”, stepped over from the company.
Zhao also consented to personally pay a$ 50 million fine and is prohibited from working for the company for at least three more years.
Zhao received a four-month prison sentence for his part in the violations, which is yet another blow to his command in the business.
The prosecutor’s office even collected$ 8.8 million in civil actions and$ 3.8 million in criminal restitution, including payment from a java have owner who paid$ 96, 000 for tax agencies and a restaurant owner who settled a$ 500, 000 tax fraud case.
Legal series included$ 217, 000 from the sale of Dr. Frank Li’s medical office and$ 1.23 million from Yakima Products for paid duties on imported metal.
Additionally, the city won an asset forfeiture of$ 2.86 million, which will be used to pay compensation to victims of crime and aid in legislation enforcement operations.
Binance and SEC Seek 60-Day Constitutional Wait
Meanwhile, Binance and the U. S. Securities and Exchange Commission ( SEC ) under acting chair Mark Uyeda have jointly requested a 60-day pause in their ongoing legal dispute.
The SEC has set up a blockchain task force, which both parties hope will help define regulatory systems and possibly solve the situation.
If approved, the pause did wait gestures, including Binance’s request to ignore the SEC’s lawsuit accusing the transfer of violating securities rules.
In addition to its problems, Binance is facing a French investigation into cash fraud and forgery.
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