Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – The United States Department of Justice asked Binance Holdings to pay US$ 4 billion (Rp. 61.8 trillion) as part of an agreement to settle the criminal case facing the crypto exchange and its founder, Changpeng Zhao.
The US federal government has been investigating Binance Holdings’ actions since 2018. According to Reuters who quotes Bloomberg, The investigation is nearing its final stage.
A source familiar with the investigation process stated that the process had entered the conclusion stage, but did not mention details of penalties or deadlines. According to Bloomberg, an announcement of the results of the investigation will be made at the end of November.
Reuters citing the same source, stated that federal investigators might impose a fine of up to US$ 4 billion (Rp. 61.8 trillion). Talks between Binance and the US Department of Justice also include criminal prosecution of Changpeng Zhao (CZ) in the US.
Whatever the outcome of the investigation into Binance, the crypto industry is certain to be hit by negative sentiment. Previously, the crypto industry had been hit by a fraud scandal and misuse of customer funds by the FTX crypto exchange. FTX founder, Sam Bankman Fried, has been found guilty by a jury and is still awaiting sentence from a judge.
The investigation into Binance stems from the US Department of Justice’s move to ask Binance to hand over internal records about the company’s anti-money laundering efforts. The federal government also asked Binance to hand over employee communication records, including those involving CZ.
Binance is also facing cases of violating exchange rules. The US exchange authority (SEC) accused Binance of operating an “effort to circumvent federal securities regulations.”
[Gambas:Video CNBC]
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