7 Biggest Revelations About Binance From CFTC’s Explosive Lawsuit

Changpeng Zhao, CEO of Binance. Photo by Getty.

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The Commodity Futures Trading Commission sued crypto exchange Binance and its CEO, Changpeng Zhao, Monday for violating U.S. trading laws, the first major lawsuit from a U.S. agency against the world’s largest crypto exchange.

The lawsuit alleges that Binance breached multiple laws by encouraging U.S.-based customers to use the trading platform despite the fact that it hadn’t registered with U.S. regulators. It provides the most detailed look yet at Binance’s inner workings, including how much money it generates from derivative trading, how the company urged U.S. customers to use virtual private networks and shell companies to access the international exchange, and how Binance trades on its own exchange.

“The complaint filed by the CFTC is unexpected and disappointing as we have been working collaboratively with the CFTC for more than two years,” a Binance spokesperson said in an email. “Nevertheless, we intend to continue to collaborate with regulators in the US and around the world.”