The United States Court ruled that the former CEO of Binance , Changpeng “CZ” Zhao , must surrender his passport and remain in the US pending his sentence. CZ must also keep authorities updated on any trips he plans to take during his stay in the country.
The decision was published on Tuesday (12) and changes CZ’s travel conditions. If he decides to travel to a place that requires identification, he must be accompanied by a third party who will be in possession of his passport.
Furthermore, the document states that the Binance founder “may not apply for or obtain a new passport or travel document from any country without the permission of the Court.”
Third parties holding the former Binance executive’s passports can only return them with the permission of pre-trial services or the court.
The accusations against CZ
Last November, CZ pleaded guilty to violating the US Bank Secrecy Act, failing to register Binance as a financial services company, and failing to create an effective anti-money laundering program.
At the time, as a settlement, the exchange agreed to pay a fine of US$4.3 billion , one of the largest corporate penalties ever seen in the US, while CZ resigned as CEO. Binance has also committed to closing its operations in the US.
Last week, the US requested a modification of CZ’s status, asking for travel restrictions. In response, the executive argued that the restrictions would be unnecessary, as his travel “has not been a problem to date”.
On the other hand, the government said that “something that has ‘not been a problem until now’ may become a problem in the future.” CZ’s sentence is scheduled for April 30th .
