Boris Johnson’s Brother Quits Binance Unit Advisory Role Amid 'Finance Transparency Concerns' and Market Turmoil – Here’s What Happened

cryptonews.com:

Jo Johnson, brother of former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, resigned from the UK advisory board of Bifinity, a unit of the major crypto exchange Binance.

Binance itself reportedly announced Johnson's departure from the payments technology company on Monday. According to The Telegraph, in a statement issued on Monday, Johnson was quoted as saying that, 

“I stepped down from the advisory board last week and have no role with it [or] any related entity.”

A part of the reason behind the decision may be the increasing pressure over the transparency of Binance's finances, the report stated.

It went on to cite official records, saying that Baron Johnson of Marylebone, former Minister of State for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation, was advising Binance as it tried to expand into the United Kingdom and launch its exchange in the country. 

Bitfinity was launched in early March this year by Binance, and Johnson had joined it as an adviser in September, said The Telegraph.

He then reportedly resigned some two-three months later, specifically last week, following Binance’s proof-of-reserves (PoR) audit. Certain financial and accounting experts expressed concern about the audit, while many in the crypto industry questioned the validity and accuracy of this specific type of PoR - and all this was followed by a possible bank run. 

As reported, Binance’s PoR audit, released in early December, had raised red flags, with some experts claiming it was far from enough to satisfy worried users, especially given its limited scope. Douglas Carmichael, an accounting professor at New York’s Baruch College, said that it was "a gross misrepresentation to call this an audit," and that he "can’t imagine it answers all the questions an