Former Binance CEO fights to return home to UAE as sentencing looms
Former Binance CEO, Zhao Changpeng, is currently facing a legal battle after pleading guilty to violating anti-money laundering requirements. Lawyers for Zhao are urging a U.S. judge to reject the Justice Department’s request to bar him from returning to his home in the United Arab Emirates until he is sentenced.
Zhao, a citizen of the UAE and Canada, stepped down as CEO of Binance after admitting to willfully causing the global cryptocurrency exchange to fail to maintain an effective anti-money laundering program. The U.S. authorities claimed that Binance broke anti-money laundering and sanctions laws and failed to report more than 100,000 suspicious transactions with organizations associated with terrorist groups, including Hamas, al Qaeda, and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.
As part of a plea deal, Binance agreed to pay more than $4.3 billion, and Zhao himself agreed to pay a $150 million penalty to the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Prosecutors have stated that he faces up to 18 months in prison.
The Justice Department is requesting that Zhao be barred from returning to the UAE until his sentencing on February 23, citing concerns that he may not return to the U.S. given the lack of an extradition treaty between the two countries and his significant wealth. However, Zhao’s lawyers argue that he has demonstrated he is not a flight risk by agreeing to a substantial bail package and voluntarily coming to the U.S. to accept responsibility for his actions.
The legal battle continues as both sides present their arguments to U.S. District Judge Richard Jones in Seattle. The case has drawn attention due to the high-stakes nature of the situation, with the potential for Zhao to face imprisonment and the complex international legal implications at play.