Binance and its founder Changpeng Zhao’s guilty plea to US anti-money-laundering laws may present hurdles to the cryptocurrency exchange’s plans to gain a legitimate foothold in Hong Kong, industry experts said, as Binance-backed local firm HKVAEX prepares to apply for a crypto licence in the city.
Zhao, co-founder of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, on Tuesday stepped down as chief executive and pleaded guilty to breaking US anti-money-laundering laws, part of a US$4.3 billion settlement of a long-running federal investigation.
