The crypto world is still reeling from the financial collapse of the Sam Bankman-Fried empire, FTX. With major exchanges taking proactive measures to prevent an imminent implosion, no one is certain how long this storm will last.
The ripple effect of this lack of credibility from FTX has led many centralized exchanges to murky waters. For instance, Gemini has downsized its staff to make up for deficits with the fear index high in the market.
Due to the gross misappropriation of funds – in the past, the scrutiny is now more than ever on exchanges.
Binance – the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world, is now in the eye of the storm. The United States Department of Justice; is divided on its decision to charge the exchange.
Another Crypto Saga Brewing?
According to Reuters, the United States federal prosecutors asked Binance to Provide its internal records on anti-money laundering checks, presented in a written request in 2020.
The investigation began in 2018, focusing on Binance’s compliance with U.S. anti-money laundering laws. Some federal prosecutors believe that swift and decisive action is needed against the exchange with the present evidence.
While some prosecutors want to file criminal charges against individuals-including Changpeng Zhao – Binance’s CEO, others want to consolidate the facts and evidence.
This investigation involves prosecutors from three of the Justice Department offices. The Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington in Seattle, and the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team.
The charges are; unlicensed money transmission, money laundering conspiracy, and violation of criminal sanctions. There are no decisions yet on charging Binance, as the case seems rather vague.
This investigation is critical to the health of the crypto sector. If the findings go against Binance, it would loosen their grip on the number one spot and trigger reactions.
Binance Dismisses Allegations Binance’s team took to Twitter to refute the allegations, emphasizing that “Reuters has it wrong again.” It went further to post the statement sent to the reporter on Twitter, which implied that they keep a high compliance level with the existing laws.
Also, the crypto giant stated that they have some of the elite cyber investigators and a team of 300 people for financial crimes on their payroll.
The investigations began in 2018; according to Reuters, Binance went to great lengths to safeguard information in the company. It remains to be seen if the crypto exchange will face charges.