U.S. prosecutors are pushing for a 36-month sentence for the former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao on charges related to facilitating money laundering, according to a late Tuesday sentencing memorandum.
Filed with the court for the western district of Washington, the memorandum argues that Zhao should face a sentence beyond advisory guidelines to adequately reflect the severity of his offenses. Under these guidelines, Zhao would typically face a prison term ranging from 12 to 18 months.
The allegations against Zhao include deliberately neglecting to establish an effective anti-money laundering program mandated by the Bank Secrecy Act. Additionally, he is accused of permitting Binance to process transactions involving proceeds from unlawful activities, including transactions between U.S. citizens and individuals in sanctioned jurisdictions.
Binance, meanwhile, faces lawsuits from both the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) over allegations of mishandling customer assets and operating an illegal, unregistered exchange in the United States.
In a separate action, the U.S. government has accused Binance and Zhao of violating the Bank Secrecy Act and sanctions related to Iran, resulting in a fine and forfeiture order of $4.3 billion against Binance, with Zhao agreeing to pay a $50 million fine. Following his agreement, Zhao stepped down as CEO of Binance in November of the previous year, with Richard Teng, former chief of Abu Dhabi markets regulator, assuming his role. Zhao’s official sentencing is scheduled for April 30th.
