U.S. Judge Richard Jones, on Friday, approved a plea deal for Binance to pay a $4.3 billion fine at a hearing in Seattle.
Gatekeepers News reports that the development comes after Binance and its founder, Changpeng Zhao, pleaded guilty late last year to breaking anti-money laundering laws and violating sanctions, bringing an end to a long-running investigation by US prosecutors and regulators.
Binance acknowledged allowing transactions with Hamas and other terrorist organisations on the exchange.
In his judgement on Friday, the US district judge approved a plea agreement between Binance and federal prosecutors, ordering the company to pay a fine of $1.8 billion and forfeiture of $2.5 billion.
“This really is a case where the ethics of the company were compromised by greed,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Government, in its sentencing memorandum, said Binance “profited from the US financial system without playing by its rules and, as a result, criminals used the exchange to move hundreds of millions of dollars of stolen funds and illicit proceeds”.
“Binance accepts responsibility for the company’s past actions and has made significant progress in taking the steps required by the terms of the plea agreement,” a Binance spokesperson said in a statement on Friday.
Binance said that the company has made “considerable compliance improvements” in KYC and anti-money laundering detection over the past few years.
“In the coming months, we look forward to continuing our efforts on compliance, security and transparency, setting the benchmark for the industry.
“We continue on the path to becoming the most trustworthy and secure digital asset exchange in the world.”
Previously, a notice from the Seattle Federal Court showed that the sentencing of former Binance CEO Zhao on money laundering charges will be postponed to April 30. He relinquished his chief executive officer post at Binance and agreed to pay a $50 million fine as part of the plea agreement.
