Binance sets up a new global advisory board to navigate regulation

Quick Take

  • Binance has created a new global advisory board made up of former government and finance officials.
  • The board will help the crypto exchange navigate financial regulations.

The crypto exchange giant Binance is bringing together a collection of former government officials and financial experts to create a new global advisory board.

The board of 10 is led by former U.S. Senator Max Baucus, who joined Binance last year. Members include Bruno Bezard, former head of the French Treasury and former economic advisor to the prime minister; Henrique de Campos Meirelles, a Brazilian former minister of the economy; and former European Commissioner David Wright.

“This collaboration highlights our commitment to compliance, transparency and ensuring a collaborative, trusting relationship with the world’s regulators,” Changpeng Zhao, Binance's founder and CEO, wrote in a tweet on Thursday to announce the new board.

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An advisory board with a focus on navigating the regulatory landscape is a culmination of a trend for Binance, which has actively hired former institutional officials in the past two years. 2021 saw the firm hire multiple former U.S. Internal Revenue Service agents, as well as a former British regulator and a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority regulator.

Fully embracing regulation is a shift for Binance, which previously was slower to adjust to regulatory measures. Reports suggest that Zhao ignored concerns from his employees in 2018 about the need to comply with anti-money laundering and know-your-customer regulations and lacked transparency in communicating with regulators.


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About Author

Inbar is a reporter covering crypto policy and regulation with a focus on Europe. Before The Block, she worked with several publications in Brussels including The Parliament Magazine and Are We Europe. Inbar holds a bachelor's degree in international relations from University College Utrecht and a master's degree in international politics from KU Leuven.