Binance hiring 1,000 as compliance spending tops $261 million, CEO says
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Binance’s Singaporean CEO Richard Teng outlined the employment goals for the world’s largest crypto trading platform.
PHOTO: BINANCE
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NEW YORK - Binance Holdings is hiring 1,000 people in 2024, with many earmarked for compliance roles as the crypto exchange’s annual spending to meet regulatory requirements, including United States oversight under a plea deal, tops US$200 million (S$261 million).
Binance’s Singaporean chief executive Richard Teng, who is visiting the US to talk to monitors and officials, outlined the employment goals for the world’s largest crypto trading platform in an interview with Bloomberg News in New York on Aug 21.
“I have been a regulator all my life,” Mr Teng, 55, said. “Government agencies are important.”
Mr Teng was formerly director of corporate finance at the Monetary Authority of Singapore and chief regulatory officer at the Singapore Exchange. He was also CEO of the regulator at Abu Dhabi’s international financial centre.
Mr Teng declined to say whether he has met with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) during his trip.
The SEC is suing Binance and was not part of the US settlement. That plea deal with the Justice Department (DOJ) and other US agencies included a US$4.3 billion penalty for failures that let criminals and terror groups use the exchange.
The company faces years of compliance monitoring by the DOJ and the US Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.
Compliance workforce
Binance plans to have a 700-strong compliance workforce by the end of 2024, up from about 500 currently, said Mr Teng.
He said Binance fields a growing number of requests from law enforcement agencies worldwide, numbering 63,000 so far in 2024, up from 58,000 in 2023.
Spending on compliance has climbed from US$158 million two years ago and is set to increase further, he said. The monitors appointed by the US agencies, Forensic Risk Alliance and Sullivan & Cromwell, have already begun work.
“They are going to do an assessment,” Mr Teng said. “We are very early in the journey.” The monitors keep an eye on the company’s financial statements and transaction tracking, he added.
In June, a judge ruled that the bulk of the SEC lawsuit against Binance and its billionaire co-founder Zhao Changpeng could proceed. The SEC sued Binance and Zhao in 2023 for mishandling customer funds, misleading investors and regulators, and breaking securities rules.
The defendants contested the claims and asked for the case to be dismissed. Mr Teng said Binance will continue to fight the accusations.
Mr Teng took over as Binance’s CEO in 2023
Under Mr Teng, Binance has adjusted the way it works with prime brokers, tightened requirements for listing new digital tokens and spun off its venture arm.
However the company has yet to formally designate a global headquarters or release a fully audited set of accounts.
Mr Teng said the business continues to be profitable and that Dubai, Abu Dhabi and another city he declined to specify are on a shortlist of potential locations for the headquarters. A company spokesperson two months ago said Binance’s headcount was upwards of 5,000 staff.
The planned hiring spree also encompasses customer service roles, according to Mr Teng.
The expansion follows a rebound in crypto prices and trading volumes from a bear market in 2022 that led to a spate of job losses across the sector. BLOOMBERG
