LONDON, June 15 (Reuters) – The U.S. affiliate of crypto giant Binance has carried out a round of layoffs since regulators last week charged it with violating securities laws and sought to freeze its assets, said two people with knowledge of the dismissals and employees’ social media posts.
One of the sources said around 50 people were laid off. Reuters was unable to independently verify the number or seniority of employees affected.
A Binance.US spokesperson did not respond to emails and calls seeking comment.
Employees in Binance.US’ legal, compliance and risk departments were among those dismissed, the people told Reuters, requesting anonymity because the matter is private.
The SEC on June 5 accused Binance and its founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao of creating Binance.US as part of a “web of deception” to evade securities laws aimed at protecting U.S. investors. Binance said it would defend itself “vigorously.”
The SEC also sued Binance.US’ operating company, BAM Trading, alleging that it misled investors about “non-existent trading” controls over its platform.
A day later, the SEC asked a federal court to freeze Binance.US’ assets, including more than $2.2 billion held in crypto and some $377 million in U.S. dollar bank accounts. The SEC expressed concern that the exchange could move those funds offshore.
Binance.US called the request “unwarranted” and said the SEC’s allegations were “unjustified.”
Two Binance.US employees said on LinkedIn on Wednesday they were leaving the company, with one citing a “round of layoffs.”
Reporting by Angus Berwick and Tom Wilson; edited by Elisa Martinuzzi and Richard Chang
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Angus Berwick
Thomson Reuters
Award-winning investigative reporter based in London, focused on financial enterprise journalism. He was previously a correspondent in Spain and Venezuela, where he reported on the Maduro government’s efforts to retain power. He was Reuters’ Reporter of the Year in 2019 and has won two Overseas Press Club awards.
Tom Wilson
Thomson Reuters
Tom covers crypto companies, regulation and markets from London, focusing through 2022 on the Binance crypto exchange. He has worked at Reuters since 2014, with a previous posting to Tokyo where he uncovered abuses in Japan’s immigration system and won a joint Overseas Press Club award for reporting on the tobacco giant Philip Morris.
