Binance is moving toward a potential deal with the US Justice Department (DOJ) that would allow the world’s largest crypto exchange to drop a key oversight requirement from its $4.3 billion settlement for money laundering violations.
According to a report from Bloomberg, federal prosecutors are discussing ending the requirement for Binance to maintain an outside compliance monitor, which has a three-year duration under the original 2023 agreement.
Binance would likely adopt enhanced compliance reporting requirements before the DOJ signs off on eliminating the monitor requirement. Matthew Galeotti, head of the DOJ’s Criminal Division, noted in the report that while monitors reduce repeat offenses, they “can also impose substantial expense and interfere with lawful business operations.“
The reported ongoing negotiation is the latest softening in DOJ’s approach to independent oversight under the Trump administration, which, according to the report already ended monitors for three companies appointed during the Biden era.
NatWest Group and navy shipbuilder Austal USA agreed to enhanced compliance reporting as alternatives to continued monitoring. The review happened as concerns raised by corporations about the financial burden and operational interference caused by independent monitors.
According to Bloomberg, the DOJ has already terminated independent oversight for three companies that agreed to monitors under Biden administration settlements, including two Glencore units that accumulated $142 million in combined costs during 2023 and 2024.
The settlement required founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao to step down as CEO and serve four months in prison while paying a personal $50 million fine. The DOJ investigation revealed Binance failed to prevent transactions involving Hamas’ Al-Qassam Brigades, Al Qaeda, ISIS, money launderers, and ransomware attackers.
The monitoring requirement stems from Binance’s November 2023 guilty plea to criminal charges, including Bank Secrecy Act violations, failing to register as a money transmitting business, and violating sanctions laws.
