Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, is facing a potential prison sentence of 36 months after admitting guilt to violating money laundering laws, according to U.S. prosecutors.
The court filing on Tuesday revealed that Zhao is scheduled to be sentenced on April 30 in Seattle. Last November, he stepped down as Binance’s chief and the exchange acknowledged the violations, resulting in a hefty penalty of $4.32 billion.
U.S. prosecutors argued that due to the severity of Zhao’s intentional breach of U.S. law and its consequences, a sentence exceeding the recommended guidelines is justified.
The federal sentencing guidelines stipulate a maximum prison term of 18 months for Zhao, who had previously agreed not to appeal any sentence up to that length.
Currently, he remains free in the United States on a $ 175 million bond. U.S. authorities have accused Binance of failing to report over 100,000 suspicious transactions involving designated terrorist groups such as Hamas, al Qaeda, and ISIS.
According to prosecutors, Binance’s platform was found to facilitate the sale of materials related to child sexual abuse and had received a significant portion of ransomware profits.
In response, CZ, also known as Zhao, has agreed to pay $50 million and discontinue his association with Binance, the platform he established in 2017.
As part of the penalty imposed on Binance, they are required to pay a criminal fine of $1.81 billion and provide restitution amounting to $2.51 billion.
