Binance.US Appoints Lesley O'Neill As Anti-Money Laundering Supervisor

BinanceUS appointed Lesley O'neill as the new CCO. (Photo; Doc. Dailysabah)

JAKARTA - Binance.US, Binance's branch in the United States, is reported to have appointed Lesley O'Neill as Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) or a new compliance official. O'Neill replaces Tammy Weinrib who resigned last November after working for nearly two years.

ONeill has a strong background in fintech, especially in Prove Identity, a company that provides digital identity verification services. He has worked at the Prove Identity for five years, two of whom are CCOs. Prior to joining the Prove Identity, he has also worked in conventional financial sectors, including Bank of America and Citigroup.

As a CCO at Binance.US, O'Neill will be tasked with overseeing programs related to regulatory compliance, such as know-your-customer (KYC), anti-money launching (AML), and sanctions. He will also coordinate with regulators and relevant authorities to ensure Binance.US compliance with industry laws and standards.

According to a report by The Crypto Basic, Norman Reed, interim CEO of Binance.US, welcomed the appointment of O'Neill. He said that O'Neill has the expertise needed to lead compliance and law functions in Binance.US, especially in the fields of fraud and identity. He also stressed that Binance.US is committed to building trust and transparency in the US crypto market.

Binance.US is one of Binance's subsidiaries, founded by Changpeng Zhao in 2017. Binance is a global market leader in terms of crypto trading volume, with more than 100 million users worldwide. Binance offers a wide range of services, such as spots, margins, futures, options, and peer-to-peer trading, as well as decentralized financial products (DeFi).

On the other hand, Binance also faces regulatory challenges in various countries, including the US. In June 2020, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a lawsuit against Binance, Zhao, and several other executives, on charges of selling securities without permission.

The lawsuit claims that Binance sells digital tokens that are considered securities, such as Binance Coin (BNB), Binance USD (BUSD), and other tokens related to DeFi projects. The lawsuit also alleges that Zhao has full control over Binance.US, despite claiming that Binance.US operates independently of Binance.

In November 2020, Binance reached an agreement with the US Department of Justice (DOJ), US Treasury, US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and the US Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC), to resolve legal issues facing the company.

Under the agreement, Binance agreed to pay a fine of $4.3 billion, which is the largest fine ever imposed on a crypto company. Binance also agreed to implement stricter compliance programs, including KYC, AML, and sanctions, as well as cooperate with regulators and US law enforcement.

In addition, Zhao resigned as Binance CEO and pleaded guilty to AML's violation. He agreed to pay a personal fine of $50 million (Rp704 billion) and promised not to engage in illegal crypto activities in the US.

In the midst of this regulatory crisis, Binance.US also underwent a change of leadership. Brian Shroder, former CEO of Binance.US, stepped down in September 2020, along with several other staff. Reed, who is a former SEC regulator and former Chief Legal Officer and General Counsel Binance.US, was appointed interim CEO.

Apart from Reed and O'Neill, Binance.US also recruited several new executives, such as Chief Operating Officer (COO) Michael totaling, Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Mark Kelly, and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) David Hirsch. Despite facing regulatory pressure, Binance remains the dominant global crypto exchange.