The Securities and Exchange Commission has filed 13 charges against cryptocurrency exchange Binance and its co-founder Changpeng Zhao, alleging that it combined billions of dollars in user funds and sent them to a European company controlled by Zhao.
The US regulator alleged that Zhao and his exchange worked to subvert «their own controls» to allow high net worth investors and clients to continue trading on Binance’s unregulated international exchange.
The defendants displayed a “blatant disregard” for federal law, the SEC alleged in its complaint.
The complaint also alleges that Binance and Zhao violated “critical” provisions of federal security laws, including self-dealing and market manipulation, through Merit Peak Limited, which Zhao controlled and owned.
“Throughout thirteen counts, we allege that the Zhao and Binance entities engaged in an extensive web of deception, conflicts of interest, failure to disclose, and calculated evasion of the law,” SEC Chairman Gary Gensler said in a statement. a statement.
This is a developing story. Please check for updates.