Binance Slams Reuters Report On Commingling Customer Funds, Skirts Denying Wrongdoings
Patrick Hillmann, the chief communication officer of Binance, addressed a recent Reuters report that alleged Binance had commingled customer funds, pointing out several flaws in the reporting and emphasizing the transparency of Binance's operations.
Notably, Hillmann did not categorically state that the Reuters article was false.
The world's largest cryptocurrency exchange has been accused of commingling customer funds with company revenue, in violation of U.S. financial rules.
Quoting sources familiar with the matter, the report stated that billions of dollars were mixed almost daily in accounts held at U.S. lender Silvergate Bank (NYSE:SI).
A bank record reviewed by the news agency showed the mixing of funds on a specific date.
The report however clarified that there was no evidence that Binance client monies were lost or taken.
The report highlighted that when users purchased Binance USD (CRYPTO: BUSD), they were taken to a transaction page that displayed the term "deposit."
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Hillmann argued that this was merely a misinterpretation, as users were actually making a purchase of a stablecoin redeemable by Paxos, clearly stated on the page.
Criticizing the report as being "weak" he said it was relying on "conspiracy theories" without providing any substantial evidence apart from a "former insider."
He stated that Binance had been transparent about past regulatory shortcomings and called on a respected news outlet like Reuters to refrain from making unsubstantiated claims.
Additionally, Hillmann addressed the issue of "xenophobia", noting that the report consistently mentioned Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao's ethnicity without highlighting that he had been a Canadian citizen since the age of 12.
It is important to note that Binance's response focused on questioning the validity and accuracy of the Reuters report, without explicitly stating that it was false.
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