Binance
founder
Changpeng
“CZ”
Zhao
must
remain
in
the
U.S.,
at
least
for
the
moment,
as
a
federal
judge
considers
a
U.S.
Department
of
Justice
motion
that
would
require
him
to
remain
in
the
country
until
he
is
sentenced
early
next
year.
Zhao
pleaded
guilty
to
violating
the
Bank
Secrecy
Act
last
week
and
resigned
as
CEO
of
Binance,
the
world’s
largest
crypto
exchange
by
volume.
The
exchange
itself
pleaded
guilty
to
charges
of
violating
sanctions
and
money
transmission
laws,
agreeing
to
pay
a
$4.3
billion
fine
and
embed
compliance
monitors
who
can
report
back
to
the
U.S.
government.
After
Zhao
pleaded
guilty,
a
magistrate
judge
granted
his
release
on
a
$175
million
personal
recognizance
bond.
Zhao
put
$15
million
in
a
trust
account
and
had
three
guarantors
put
up
over
$5
million
in
collateral
to
secure
the
bond.
Under
the
terms
of
the
bond
release,
he
was
free
to
return
to
the
UAE,
where
his
wife
and
children
also
reside.
District
Judge
Richard
Jones
stayed
this
part
of
the
ruling
on
Monday.
However,
attorneys
with
the
U.S.
Department
of
Justice
moved
to
keep
Zhao
in
the
U.S.,
arguing
he
could
be
a
flight
risk
if
he
leaves
the
country,
noting
that
he
still
has
a
vast
amount
of
wealth
and
that
there’s
no
extradition
treaty
between
the
U.S.
and
the
UAE.
They
are
not
pushing
to
put
him
in
jail
ahead
of
his
Feb.
23,
2024
sentencing.
Judge
Jones
did
not
indicate
if
he
would
schedule
a
hearing
or
when
he
might
otherwise
rule
on
the
motion
in
Monday’s
hearing.
Zhao’s
attorneys
argued
that
he
had
already
demonstrated
his
intent
to
take
responsibility
by
coming
to
the
U.S.
to
plead
guilty
in
the
first
place.
His
wife
and
children
cannot
relocate
for
a
few
months
just
for
sentencing,
they
said.
Zhao
faces
anywhere
from
a
few
months
to
as
many
as
10
years
in
prison,
the
DOJ
said,
though
Zhao
can
appeal
any
sentence
longer
than
18
months.
He
also
agreed
to
pay
a
$50
million
fine
as
part
of
his
plea
agreement.
