Binance's Zhao Changpeng responds to recent FUD: "User funds are safe" and cannot be tarnished
In recent times, there have been continuous negative news about Binance, with its founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) also retaliating on Twitter.
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Zhao Changpeng: Binance's High Liquidity Cannot be FUDded
CZ stated that there has been much debate within the crypto community recently, but despite the existence of FUD, as long as Binance is doing the right thing, Binance does not need to refute, and the community will also come forward to support Binance. He mentioned:
Let me summarize recent negative news, rumors, bank runs, lawsuits, closure of fiat channels, product reductions, employee movements, exiting specific markets, etc. Guess what hasn't been FUDded? There are no liquidity issues, all deposits and withdrawals are handled properly, user funds are safe and 100% fully reserved.
He also emphasized that news of winning lawsuits, handling bank run issues, launching new fiat channels, upgrading products, as well as new executives and new markets, seem to have received less attention compared to negative news.
In addition, CZ pointed out that Binance's founding team may have the lowest turnover rate compared to tech startups of the same period and size.
Saw some debates in the community. When you do the right thing, and there is FUD, you don't have to do anything. The community defends you.
Let me summarize. There have been a lot of negative news/rumors, bank runs, lawsuits, closing of fiat channels, product wind downs,…
— CZ 🔶 Binance (@cz_binance) September 7, 2023
Executive Departures at Binance
In short, on September 6th, Binance saw the departure of two executives, which has attracted attention. According to data compiled by Cointelegraph, Binance has seen 10 executives resigning this year, which has raised concerns about the well-being of Binance:
September 6th: Helen Hai, Global Fiat Business Lead
September 6th: Vladimir Smerkis, General Manager for Russia and the CIS region
September 6th: Gleb Kostarev, Head of Binance for Eastern Europe and Russia
September 4th: Mayur Kamat, Global Product and Design Lead
August 31st: Leon Foong, Head of Asia-Pacific
July 7th: Steven Christie, Deputy Compliance Officer
July 6th: Patrick Hillmann, Chief Strategy Officer
July 6th: Hon Ng, Chief Legal Adviser
July 6th: Steve Milton, Deputy Chief Marketing Officer
July 6th: Matt Price, Head of Global Intelligence and Investigations
The departures of the two Russian executives occurred after two consecutive reports by The Wall Street Journal, both related to Binance's handling of a large volume of Russian trading business, with reports suggesting that this may intensify the U.S. Department of Justice's investigation into Binance.
On August 28th, the SEC filed a motion to seal a document, in order to submit sensitive information to the court without disclosing its contents.
Former head of the SEC's Internet Enforcement Office, John Reed Stark, pointed out that in his nearly 20 years of working in the SEC enforcement division, he had never seen the SEC file a motion to seal court documents.
At the time, he speculated that the U.S. Department of Justice's investigation into Binance may have escalated to a criminal level, or the SEC may have filed the motion simply to protect specific witnesses.