“I am fortunate to be taking on the leadership of a business whose fundamentals are very strong”, Binance’s new CEO Richard Teng wrote in his first statement after company Founder Changpeng Zhao step down and admitted to engaging in anti-money laundering, unlicensed money transmitting and sanctions violations.
“Not only does Binance continue to operate the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by volume but our capital structure is debt-free, our expenses are modest, and, despite the low transaction fees we charge our users, we have robust revenues and profits”, Richard Teng wrote.
“But most importantly, we take our responsibility as a custodian very seriously and maintain 1:1 backing for every user asset. Your assets are protected.
From our proof-of-reserves system, which we have continuously improved since it was first implemented more than 12 months ago, to our Secure Asset Fund for Users (SAFU) emergency fund, we are committed to ensuring you feel secure in the integrity of our platform” he said.
Billionaire Changpeng Zhao and leading cryptocurrency exchange Binance pleaded guilty on Tuesday to federal charges in a watershed moment designed to bring order to the often-lawless crypto industry.
As part of a coordinated settlement across the federal government, Binance has agreed to pay more than $4 billion in fines and other penalties. Zhao, one of the most powerful figures in crypto, has agreed to step down as CEO from the exchange that he founded, and he will pay $200 million in fines.
Binance, which is the world’s largest crypto exchange, admitted to engaging in anti-money laundering, unlicensed money transmitting and sanctions violations.
US officials described this as the biggest-ever corporate resolution that includes criminal charges for an executive.
Zhao faces a potential prison sentence of up to 10 years. He was recently refused to leave U.S. for Dubai based on UAE’s unclear extradition policies.
US officials say Binance allowed more than 100,000 transactions involving illicit activity as well as more than 1.5 million virtual currency trades that violated US sanctions, including sanctions on Iran, Syria and Cuba.
“While Binance is not perfect, it has strived to protect users since its early days as a small startup and has made tremendous efforts to invest in security and compliance,” the company said in a statement Tuesday.
Binance said new CEO is an experienced executive with over three decades of financial services and regulatory experience.
Richard Teng joined Binance in August 2021 as CEO of Binance Singapore. Soon thereafter, he held roles looking after the MENA region, the European region, and ultimately all regions outside of the U.S. as the Head of Regional Markets at Binance. In this role, he led regional teams to secure strategic partnerships, foster an ecosystem of innovation, and expand the cryptocurrency ecosystem within the respective regions.
Prior to joining Binance, Richard was CEO of the Financial Services Regulatory Authority at Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), where he showcased his capabilities as one of the world’s foremost innovative regulators. Richard’s vast experience also includes previous roles as the Chief Regulatory Officer of the Singapore Exchange (SGX) and Director of Corporate Finance at the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Richard received his Masters in Applied Finance (Distinction) from the University of Western Australia and a Bachelor of Accountancy (1st Class) from Nanyang Technological University.
Discussion about this post