But Zhao’s journey at Binance has been removed from clean crusing — the corporate has been embroiled in a number of controversies.
REUTERS/Darrin Zammit Lupi
In October, some $570 million value of cryptocurrency traded on Binance was stolen in a blockchain hack, in accordance with the New York Times. Zhao instructed CNBC in an October interview that no customers had misplaced cash within the assault, and that “software code is never bug free.” The Binance hack is without doubt one of the largest cryptocurrency hacks of all time.
Binance mentioned in a weblog submit that within the occasion of a hack sooner or later, its validators will determine if the hacked funds might be frozen. The resolution can be made by way of a collection of “on-chain governance votes” — the system that manages and implements modifications to the blockchain. Binance added they’d additionally think about implementing a “bug bounty reward system,” so customers are incentivized to report bugs.
“Nearly $570 million were minted and taken by the hacker, $100 million are unrecovered and moved off chain by the hacker. No users or users funds affected,” Mustajab mentioned.
Binance has additionally been criticized for its ties to China. Binance solely delisted Chinese yuan-based buying and selling pairs on the alternate in 2021, and served clients in China for a number of years, in accordance with September article by Protos. Chinese authorities banned all crypto-related transactions in September 2021.
Zhao responded to those allegations in a weblog submit printed in September, the place he clarified that Binance was by no means integrated in China and mentioned it doesn’t “operate like a Chinese company culturally.” He added that he’s “a Canadian citizen, period.”
Binance additionally garnered controversy for enabling Iran-based customers to commerce cryptocurrencies on the alternate regardless of US-imposed sanctions, in accordance with a July report by Reuters. Binance knowledgeable merchants in Iran to liquidate their accounts in November 2018, however seven merchants continued till September 2021 to make use of the account even after the ban. Binance didn’t reply to Reuters’ requests for remark on the time.