Binance sees $1.5b pulled in 24 hours after CEO's guilty plea

The news: Investors have pulled around USD956 million ($1.46 billion) from Binance over the past 24 hours after the crypto exchange's CEO Changpeng Zhao stepped down and pled guilty to settle a years-long illicit finance probe, Reuters reported.

The numbers: Binance's alleged crimes include failure to report more than 100,000 suspicious transactions including with Hamas, al Qaeda and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. The settlement with the US Justice Department will see Binance pay USD4.3 billion to US authorities. Zhao, who will now be barred from all involvement with Binance, will personally pay a USD50 million fine and face a maximum prison sentence of 18 months. In June, investors pulled around USD1.43 billion from the crypto exchange and its US affiliate after the US Securities and Exchange Commission sued the companies.

The context: Zhao stepped down as chief of the world's largest crypto exchange on Tuesday after pleading guilty to breaking US anti-money laundering laws. Zhao's guilty plea will resolve criminal charges on three counts, including conducting an unlicensed money transmitter business, conspiracy and breaching sanctions regulations. Zhao has been replaced by Richard Teng, a senior Binance executive who joined in 2021, the company said.

What they said: Binance did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but said on Tuesday it had worked hard to fix its problems and had become "stronger, safer and even more secure."