Justice Department wants Binance to pay over $4B to end criminal case - report

The U.S. Justice Department wants Binance to fork over more than $4B in penalties as part of a proposed resolution of a probe into the Changpeng Zhao-led cryptocurrency exchange, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg on Monday. Zhao, also known as "CZ," would face criminal charges in the U.S. under a deal to resolve the years-long investigation into alleged sanctions violations, money laundering and bank fraud, the people said, citing negotiations between the DOJ and Binance. The Binance chief is currently residing in the United Arab Emirates, which does not have an extradition treaty with the U.S., Bloomberg noted. Binance has drawn increased scrutiny from other U.S. agencies. In June, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed a lawsuit against Binance and CZ, accusing the exchange of misappropriating customer funds and violating securities rules. Also, the commodity Futures Trading Commission in March alleged that Binance breached U.S. derivatives rules. An announcement regarding the proposed resolution could be made as soon as the end of this month, the people said, noting the exact timing and structure of the specific charges aren't clear, Bloomberg reported. More on Binance Binance unveils self-custody Web3 wallet Binance to halt access to its crypto exchange for new U.K. users Binance's global head of product resigns - report