Binance Set to Recruit 1,000 New Hires, Majority for Compliance Roles

Crypto exchange Binance has hired 1,000 new employees in 2024, focusing primarily on compliance positions. This move comes as part of its strategy to address regulatory challenges, especially in the US.

The exchange’s expenditure toward compliance and regulatory adherence this year has exceeded $200m.

Binance CEO Richard Teng is currently in the US to engage with regulatory monitors and officials. During a Bloomberg interview on Wednesday, he discussed his objective to enhance compliance within the company. Teng, who has a background in regulation, spoke about the significance of government agencies in his approach to running Binance.

Binance plans to have 700 compliance staff by the end of 2024, up from about 500 now. Dubai, Abu Dhabi and another city are on the shortlist of possible locations for the headquarters. HeYi is involved in all aspects of the business and runs Binance’s HR department.

— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) August 22, 2024

Teng did not confirm if he had any meetings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, currently involved in legal action against Binance, during his visit.

Binance confirmed in a statement to Cryptonews that the exchange has hired over 1,000 employees this year as of mid-August.

Richard Teng’s Regulatory Background Key to His Rapid Rise at Binance

Prior to his role at Binance, Teng held the position of Director of Corporate Finance at the Monetary Authority of Singapore, where he played a key role in financial regulation and policy. He also served as the CEO of the Financial Services Regulatory Authority at the Abu Dhabi Global Market.

Teng first became part of Binance when he took on the role as head for Binance’s operations in Singapore back in August 2021. However, his time there was short-lived as Binance chose to close its Singapore operations by early 2022.

After his brief period in Singapore, Teng’s role grew to include management over Binance’s activities in the Middle East, North Africa, and Europe. Later, he was appointed to lead all regions excluding the US as the Head for Regional Markets.

His swift rise through Binance’s ranks was largely shaped by his regulatory expertise, which proved essential as the company navigated through increasing regulatory hurdles.

Binance Sees 10% Increase in Law Enforcement Requests, Sees Compliance Spending Climbing

The hiring plans come after a plea agreement with US authorities in Nov. 2023. Binance and former CEO, Changpeng Zhao, admitted to several charges as part of the deal. This agreement included significant fines exceeding $4.3b. The fines were due to breaches of the Bank Secrecy Act, failure to register as a money-transmitting business, and violations of international economic powers laws.

According to Bloomberg, Binance aims to increase its compliance team to 700 by year-end, up from about 500 currently.

Teng noted that the company is seeing an uptick in inquiries from global law enforcement, with the number of requests jumping almost 10% from last year.

He added that the exchange’s compliance expenditure has risen from $158m a couple of years back and is expected to continue its upward trend.

Teng has earlier acknowledged mistakes made during Binance’s early days. He particularly highlighted that its compliance efforts were insufficient at the time.