US court approves settlement between Binance and CFTC
A U.S. court has ruled in the case of the largest crypto exchange, Binance.
The U.S. District Court for Northern Illinois approved a previously announced settlement. It concluded the enforcement action first taken by the CFTC in November.
The document states that former crypto exchange CEO Changpeng Zhao and Binance will pay fines of $150 million and $2.7 billion, respectively, as part of a settlement with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
“The court finds Zhao and Binance violated the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) and CFTC regulations, imposes a $150 million civil monetary penalty personally against Zhao, and requires Binance to disgorge $1.35 billion of ill-gotten transaction fees and pay a $1.35 billion penalty to the CFTC.”
Court statement
The approved settlement agreement marks the settlement of the conflict between the regulator and the trading platform. The commission indicted Binance and Zhao in March 2023 for evading federal law and operating an illegal derivatives exchange.
On Nov. 21, Zhao agreed to step down as a chief executive at Binance as part of a broader settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice, the Treasury Department, and the CFTC. That same day, Zhao pleaded guilty to several civil charges and one criminal charge related to anti-money laundering laws. He faces up to 18 months in prison on the money laundering charge and has agreed not to appeal any potential sentence of that length.
