Originally published on: September 27, 2024
The news of Binance founder Changpeng Zhao’s early release from custody on Sept. 27 caused a slight dip in the prices of Bitcoin and Binance’s BNB token as the trading day began.
As reported by Forbes previously, Zhao holds a significant 64% of the total BNB supply, which had set his net worth around $61 billion back in June 2024, ranking him as the 24th richest person globally at the time. The concerns over the centralized nature of the Binance token arose due to Zhao’s substantial holdings of the native currency.
Currently, Zhao’s ownership of 94 million BNB tokens amounts to approximately $57 billion in value, showing a noteworthy decrease since prices peaked over $700 in June 2024.
In an analysis conducted by Gray Wolf Analytics and Forbes in 2024, it was discovered that the original Binance team had received 80 million BNB tokens, with the company still holding around 46 million of those tokens.
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) had laid charges against both Binance and Zhao in 2023, accusing the Binance founder of violating the Bank Secrecy Act.
Based on a joint statement from the US Department of the Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control, the US Department of the Treasury Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, regulatory action was taken against Binance and Zhao.
Following an investigation, a $4 billion settlement was reached between Binance and the Securities and Exchange Commission, causing a 7% increase in the price of BNB within 24 hours. The settlement also required Binance to pay a hefty $4.3 billion and Zhao to be fined an additional $50 million, with the company subjected to independent monitoring for the next three years.
Lawmakers’ concerns and skepticism regarding cryptocurrencies are pushing for proposed regulations in the US, amid the ongoing developments in the industry.
