Media: Changpeng Zhao intends to reduce his stake in Binance.US

The businessman is seeking to get rid of some of the shares from the summer of 2022

12.05.2023 - 08:35

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3 min

What’s new? Binance founder Changpeng Zhao is exploring ways to reduce his stake in the US arm of the crypto exchange amid tight scrutiny from federal regulators, The Information reports, citing its own sources. The businessman has reportedly been trying to get rid of part of his controlling stake in Binance.US since the summer of 2022. And after the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC)filed a lawsuit against the global exchange in March 2023, Binance.US executives considered potentially reducing Zhao’s stake as a way to improve the company’s reputation with US regulators.

Material by The Information

More details about the situation. The CFTC accused the global exchange of intentionally violating US law and providing services to Americans to maximize its own profits, claiming its compliance program is bogus. Binance denies the allegations, highlighting the exchange’s proactive efforts to comply with US regulations.

In April, Bloomberg disclosed the anonymous US VIPs of Binance named in the CFTC lawsuit. They are Radix Trading, Jane Street Group, and Tower Research Capital, they provided liquidity to the exchange in exchange for favorable trading conditions. It was later reported that Jane Street will phase out cryptocurrency trading in the States due to regulatory pressure.

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In May, Binance chief strategy officer Patrick Hillmann said that doing business in the US had become “very difficult” due to regulatory pressure and lack of clarity. According to him, the exchange hopes to obtain a license to operate in the United Kingdom. In addition, earlier Binance positively assessed the relevant bill of the local authorities, attaching their amendments to it.

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