A US financial regulator has accused Binance and its chief executive Changpeng Zhao of operating illegally in the country, in a lawsuit that seeks fines and an injunction against the world’s largest crypto trading exchange.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission alleged in a civil complaint filed on Monday that much of Binance’s reported trading volume and profitability have come from “extensive solicitation of and access to” US customers, contradicting the exchange’s claims.
“Binance’s solicitation of customers located in the United States subjected Binance to registration and regulatory requirements under US law. But Binance, Zhao, and Lim have all chosen to ignore those requirements,” the CFTC’s complaint said.