{"id":13100,"date":"2024-04-30T20:44:13","date_gmt":"2024-04-30T17:44:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forklog.com\/en\/binance-founder-changpeng-zhao-sentenced-to-four-months-in-prison\/"},"modified":"2024-04-30T20:44:13","modified_gmt":"2024-04-30T17:44:13","slug":"binance-founder-changpeng-zhao-sentenced-to-four-months-in-prison","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/u1f987.com\/en\/binance-founder-changpeng-zhao-sentenced-to-four-months-in-prison\/","title":{"rendered":"Binance Founder Changpeng Zhao Sentenced to Four Months in Prison"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>A federal court in Seattle is currently hearing the case of Changpeng Zhao (CZ), where U.S. authorities accuse the former head of Binance of money laundering and other illegal activities.<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-text-wrappers-update-2 article_update\"><time class=\"gtb_text-wrappers_update_time\">April 30, 2024 | 22:06<\/time><span class=\"gtb_text-wrappers_update_head\">Update: <\/span><\/p>\n<p>CZ has been <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/nikhileshde\/status\/1785383500021125617\" title=\"sentenced\">sentenced<\/a> to four months in prison.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"863\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/u1f987.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2024-04-30_21-59-01-863x1024.jpg\" alt=\"photo_2024-04-30_21-59-01\" class=\"wp-image-231844\" srcset=\"https:\/\/u1f987.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2024-04-30_21-59-01-863x1024.jpg 863w, https:\/\/u1f987.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2024-04-30_21-59-01-253x300.jpg 253w, https:\/\/u1f987.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2024-04-30_21-59-01-768x911.jpg 768w, https:\/\/u1f987.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2024-04-30_21-59-01.jpg 1079w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 863px) 100vw, 863px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>According to a <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/nikhileshde\/status\/1785355429582979304\">transcript<\/a> by CoinDesk journalists Danny Nelson and Nikhilesh De, the judge may reject the prosecution&#8217;s request for a harsher sentence for CZ, as there is no evidence he was aware of illegal activities at the cryptocurrency exchange he led.<\/p>\n<p>Judge Richard Jones, agreeing with the prosecution, is <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WuBlockchain\/status\/1785353934200279328\">considering<\/a> a sentence of 10 to 16 months in prison and supervision from one to three years. He awaits opinions from the Department of Justice, the defense, and Zhao before making a final decision.<\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/telegram.org\/js\/telegram-widget.js?22\" data-telegram-post=\"forklog\/37169\" data-width=\"100%\"><\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p>\n<cite>\u201cWe do not suggest that Mr. Zhao is Sam Bankman-Fried or that he is a monster,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/nikhileshde\/status\/1785356307249442842\">emphasized<\/a> a representative of the U.S. Department of Justice.<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>The department <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/nikhileshde\/status\/1785357372841771512?s=61&#038;t=tjANIFgc3RUSCDcZ7A60Ag\">demands<\/a> a \u201csignificant\u201d prison sentence for CZ, arguing that a suspended sentence would \u201cencourage others to break the law on the largest possible scale.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A probation officer supported this recommendation, suggesting a five-month prison term. He stated that if Zhao is not imprisoned, he should be under house arrest in the U.S.<\/p>\n<p>CZ&#8217;s defense opposes imprisonment, arguing that all factors favor a more lenient punishment.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/u1f987.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2024-04-30_21-01-30-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"photo_2024-04-30_21-01-30\" class=\"wp-image-231828\" srcset=\"https:\/\/u1f987.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2024-04-30_21-01-30-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/u1f987.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2024-04-30_21-01-30-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/u1f987.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2024-04-30_21-01-30.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Photo of the courtroom. Source: Telegram channel <a href=\"https:\/\/t.me\/wublockchainenglish\" title=\"Wu Blockchain News\">Wu Blockchain News<\/a>. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The defense <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/nikhileshde\/status\/1785362535316922614\">highlighted<\/a> Zhao&#8217;s voluntary cooperation with U.S. authorities, suggesting a possible reduction of the sentence to five months.<\/p>\n<p>After a short break, CZ was given the floor:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p>\n<cite>\u201cThe first step to accountability is full acknowledgment of mistakes,\u201d emphasized the former head of Binance.<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>He added that he failed to establish effective <span data-descr=\"\u201cKnow Your Customer\u201d\" class=\"old_tooltip\">KYC<\/span>\/<span data-descr=\"anti-money laundering\" class=\"old_tooltip\">AML<\/span> procedures at Binance in time but had been striving to rectify this. Zhao also mentioned cooperation with the U.S. government.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p>\n<cite>\u201cEverything I see in you and your personal qualities is mitigating,\u201d noted the judge.<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Initially, it was expected that the verdict for Changpeng Zhao would be announced on February 23, but the hearing was postponed for over two months. The prosecution had requested a 36-month prison sentence for the former head of Binance. Earlier, a 10-year term was discussed.<\/p>\n<p>In November, Zhao pleaded guilty to failing to maintain an effective anti-money laundering program at Binance as the company&#8217;s head. As part of an agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice, he agreed to pay a $50 million fine and step down as CEO.<\/p>\n<p>For Binance, the settlement amount was $4.3 billion.<\/p>\n<p>The former CEO posted a $175 million bail to remain free until sentencing.<\/p>\n<p>However, prosecutors demanded a travel ban for the former platform head, fearing his escape. They cited significant assets outside the country and minimal ties to the United States as risks.<\/p>\n<p>Zhao&#8217;s lawyers contested the travel ban, but the court sided with law enforcement.<\/p>\n<p>In December, the court <a href=\"https:\/\/u1f987.com\/en\/news\/court-denies-binances-cz-4-5-billion-bail-request-for-uae-departure\">denied<\/a> the entrepreneur&#8217;s request to return home to the UAE, despite a proposed $4.5 billion bail.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p>\n<cite>\u201cThe defendant possesses vast wealth and property abroad and has no ties to the United States. His family resides in the UAE, and he appears to have privileged status. Under these circumstances, the court concludes that the defendant has not demonstrated his intentions to return,\u201d wrote the judge in the order.<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Richard Teng, the head of regional markets, succeeded Zhao as CEO of Binance.<\/p>\n<p>Recently, CZ apologized to the judge in a letter for \u201cpoor decisions\u201d and accepted \u201cfull responsibility\u201d for his actions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A federal court in Seattle is currently hearing the case of Changpeng Zhao (CZ), where U.S. authorities accuse the former head of Binance of money laundering and other illegal activities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13099,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"select":"","news_style_id":"","cryptorium_level":"","_short_excerpt_text":"","creation_source":"","_metatest_mainpost_news_update":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[744,935,1162],"class_list":["post-13100","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-and-analysis","tag-binance","tag-changpeng-zhao","tag-court-cases"],"aioseo_notices":[],"amp_enabled":true,"views":"89","promo_type":"","layout_type":"","short_excerpt":"","is_update":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/u1f987.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13100","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/u1f987.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/u1f987.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/u1f987.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/u1f987.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13100"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/u1f987.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13100\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/u1f987.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13099"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/u1f987.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13100"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/u1f987.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13100"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/u1f987.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13100"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}