Ex-Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao urges judge to allow him to leave US before sentencing
Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao are urging a US 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 for violating anti-money laundering requirements.
Zhao's lawyers in a Thursday filing asked US District Judge Richard Jones in Seattle not to reverse bail conditions set by a magistrate judge on Tuesday that would allow him to leave the US while awaiting sentencing.
Elevate Your Tech Prowess with High-Value Skill Courses
Offering CollegeCourseWebsiteNorthwestern UniversityKellogg Post Graduate Certificate in Product ManagementVisitIIM LucknowIIML Executive Programme in FinTech, Banking & Applied Risk ManagementVisitIndian School of BusinessISB Product ManagementVisit Zhao, a citizen of the UAE and Canada, stepped down as CEO of Binance on Tuesday after pleading guilty to willfully causing the global cryptocurrency exchange to fail to maintain an effective anti-money laundering program.
US authorities said Binance broke US anti-money laundering and sanctions laws and failed to report more than 100,000 suspicious transactions with organizations the US described as terrorist groups including Hamas, al Qaeda and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.
The company as part of a plea deal agreed to pay more than $4.3 billion. Zhao has agreed to pay a $150 million penalty to the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and prosecutors in a Wednesday filing said he faces up to 18 months in prison.
The Justice Department has asked Jones by Monday to reverse a decision by US Magistrate Judge Brian Tsuchida to allow Zhao to return home to the UAE ahead of his Feb. 23 sentencing after he agreed to release him a $175 million bail bond.
The government said
