According to documents obtained by the Financial Times, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao "CZ" and other senior executives have been hiding their ties to the Chinese cryptocurrency exchange for years. The Financial Times reported on March 29 that Binance had maintained close ties with China for years, contrary to the company’s claim that it left the country after the 2017 cryptocurrency ban. Its presence reportedly included an office still in use at the end of 2019 and a Chinese bank used to pay staff salaries.
"We no longer publish our office address...people in China can just say our office is not in China," Zhao reportedly said in a company newsgroup in November 2017. Employees were told in 2018 that wages would be paid through a bank in Shanghai. A year later, people on salaries in China were required to attend tax meetings at an office in the country, the Financial Times reported.
According to the news, Binance employees discussed a media report that the company will open an office in Beijing in 2019. “Reminder: Publicly, we have offices in Malta, Singapore and Uganda. Please do not identify any offices anywhere else, including China.” The report supports allegations made in a lawsuit filed against the exchange by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on March 27, alleging that Binance concealed the location of its executive offices and the “identities and locations of entities” operating the trading platform. " According to the lawsuit, Zhao said in an internal Binance memo that the policy was designed to “keep the country clean [of illegal activities]” by “not logging on to .com anywhere.” This is the main reason why .com doesn't work anywhere. "
In response to the FT report, a Binance spokesperson told Cointelegraph that the company "does not operate in China, nor do we have any technology, including servers or data located in China," adding, "We strongly object to claims to the contrary. statement.” They continued: “To be clear, the Chinese government, like any other government, cannot access Binance data unless we are responding to a lawful and lawful law enforcement request.”
A Binance spokesperson also stated: "While we do have a customer service call center in China to serve Mandarin speakers globally, beginning in 2021, those employees who wish to remain with the company will receive relocation assistance." According to the exchange, the anonymous source cited ancient history and "grossly misrepresented events. This is not an accurate description of Binance's operations."
With a daily trading volume of more than $8.5 billion, Binance is the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world. The company claims it was never registered or established in China, nor does it operate in China. According to Binance, its 8,000 full-time employees are spread across Europe, the Americas, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia Pacific.
