Binance has pleaded guilty to criminal charges and paid over $4.3 billion USD in penalties.
👉 Background: Binance is the crypto exchange that was founded in China in 2017. It's the largest crypto exchange in the world. In fact, it holds 4 times more assets than the second largest crypto exchange, Coinbase.
👉 What happened: The US Department of Justice has found that Binance failed to report more than 100,000 suspicious transactions. These included crypto payments made to terrorist groups like Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Al Qaeda, and ISIS.
👉 What else: Now, Binance has pleaded guilty to criminal charges and paid over $4.3 billion USD in penalties. On top of that, the CEO has agreed to step down. All in all, this settlement just highlights the ongoing challenges of crypto and terrorist activity.
💡In industries where regulation is weak, criminals can find their sweet spot. One of crypto's major appeals is its anonymity, but this is also the reason why it's become a popular choice for terror financing.
💡UN estimates revealed that crypto-assisted terror attacks may have quadrupled in recent years. And when your 'brand' is associated with terror, it's never good news.
💡Nearly $1 billion USD has been withdrawn from Binance since this announcement. And, the price of many cryptocurrencies fell after the announcement too.
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