US officials announce $4.3B settlement with Binance, plea deal with CZ

cointelegraph.com:

Officials with the United States Department of Justice announced that Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao will plead guilty to one felony charge as part of a settlement over criminal and civil cases with the exchange.

“In a Nov. 21 press conference, Attorney General Merrick Garland announced that CZ entered his plea in person in U.S. federal court despite residing outside the country. He added that a $4.3-billion settlement with Binance and CZ would cover "civil regulatory enforcement actions” by government departments including the U.S. Treasury and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

According to Garland, Binance’s policies allowed criminals involved in illicit activities to move “stolen funds” through the exchange. He alleged the exchange “pretended to comply” with U.S. federal laws by offering paths for certain users to access Binance despite their ties to illicit funds. The attorney general said the exchange would be subject to monitoring and reporting requirements and required to file suspicious activity reports for past transactions.

“Binance prioritized its profits over the safety of the American people,” said Garland. “Using new technology to break the law does not make you a disruptor — it makes you a criminal.”

Following Garland, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Binance would pay more than $3.4 billion in penalties to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network and roughly $1 billion to the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control as part of the settlement. CFTC Chair Rostin Behnam said Binance would pay $2.7 billion in civil monetary penalties and disgorgement, CZ would pay $150 million, and former compliance chief Samuel Lin would pay $1.5 million under the proposed settlement. The Justice Department