Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) previously pleaded guilty to the U.S. Department of Justice for anti-money laundering violations and is expected to be sentenced in the U.S. on April 30. Recently, U.S. prosecutors requested a 36-month prison sentence for CZ, twice the upper limit of the federal sentencing guidelines. , Zhao Changpeng also responded.
U.S. prosecutors seek three years in prison for Zhao Changpeng
U.S. prosecutors recently argued in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington State that CZ should be sentenced to 36 months in prison.
CZ submitted a letter of apology to Judge Richard Jones, seeking a lighter sentence.
(U.S. prosecutors seek three years in prison for Zhao Changpeng, twice the upper limit of federal sentencing guidelines)
The full text of Zhao Changpeng’s apology letter
The following is the full text of CZ’s apology letter, and the link to the document is here.
While I know that I will have the opportunity to address the court in person at sentencing, I would like to take this opportunity now to thank the court and probation office for the time and thought they have given me throughout this entire process. Probation Officers Whaley and Asbury-Baca allowed me to speak openly and honestly and let the court get to know me as a person - the whole me. I'm grateful for that. I am also grateful to the court, for which I have the highest regard, for the thoughtful consideration of my case.
I apologize for my poor decision and take full responsibility for my actions. In hindsight, I should have focused on Binance’s compliance changes from the beginning, but I didn’t. It is my fault for not establishing the necessary compliance measures to regulate Binance, and I have nothing to say about it. I hope I can change this part of Binance’s history, and under my leadership Binance has implemented the strictest anti-money laundering controls of any non-U.S. exchange since 2022.
It’s difficult to describe how quickly Binance grew, and how chaotic it was to keep Binance afloat during those years as we grappled with unexpected and extremely explosive growth. But in the end, we built a great product that keeps all users and their money safe in every moment of crisis.
I also apologize to everyone I’ve let down: my family, friends, Binance employees, and the entire cryptocurrency community. While I received some comfort from hundreds of letters of support, written on my behalf or for me, it also reminded me of the magnitude of this moment: my life had changed in so many ways. I’m no longer the CEO of Binance. It’s hard to describe how deeply invested I am in Binance. Improving Binance and making it a secure platform that provides financial services to hundreds of millions of users around the world was a huge part of me. . I thought I would keep doing this for decades. That life no longer exists for me. It was hard to accept this at first, but I've come to terms with it. I look forward to making a positive impact in other areas in the future.
Looking forward, I took some time to reflect on the past. My path was not traditional: I grew up in an immigrant family, with both parents earning close to the minimum wage. I worked every day since I was 14 and maintained a simple lifestyle, and I was able to put myself through college on my own. I don’t have student loans. While in college, I fell in love with technology and tried to launch several failed startups before Binance. When those companies failed, I always returned investors' money so everyone got their money back in full. I would say to myself, "Let me try again."
I also don’t like when questions are left unresolved. That's why I voluntarily surrendered and took responsibility in this case - because I wanted to settle this matter in front of a court and start over. I wanted to right my wrongs, turn the page, and start the next chapter of my life.
I was initially interested in cryptocurrency because of the inclusivity and equal opportunities it offers to everyone around the world. Looking ahead, I also see many opportunities in biotech. Specifically, I feel that too much current medical research is too profit-driven. Big Pharma has their quarterly earnings reports, which prompts them to slightly prioritize profits, such as developing drugs that people will need to take forever. I want to help fund small research labs to cure diseases once and for all and use blockchain technology to provide medical care to billions of people around the world. I also want to fund health problems that are too expensive to develop and unfinancially attractive for major pharmaceutical companies—even though they can still be devastating to the health of a few unfortunate patients. I have spoken to a number of biotech startups in this space over the past few months and would like to make this an area of focus for the next chapter of my life.
Another place where I will continue to invest my time and energy is helping young people, which has been a priority of mine during my tenure as CEO of Binance. From education programs in Africa, to improving the living standards of disadvantaged youth in Southeast Asia, to university projects in Europe, I intend to devote the majority of my time and resources to this area, developing projects in as many places as possible, without Limited to the above example.
I cannot put into words how much I regret the choices that led to me standing in front of this court. Rest assured this will never happen again. Please accept my promise that this will be my only experience with the criminal justice system and that I will spend the rest of my life in a way that makes everyone proud.
This article, the full text of Zhao Changpeng’s apology letter: Take all responsibilities and spend the rest of your life with pride, first appeared on Lian News ABMedia.
