The U.S. Justice Department is seeking more than $4 billion from Binance Holdings as part of a proposed resolution of a years-long investigation, Bloomberg News reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the discussions.
Negotiations between the Justice Department and Binance include the possibility that the cryptocurrency exchange’s founder, Changpeng Zhao, would face criminal charges in the United States, the report said.
Any resolution is likely to play a crucial role in investor sentiment toward crypto, which has taken a hit over a wave of government investigations and charges against firms and individuals in the industry, including the recent fraud conviction of FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried.
A source familiar with the investigation said the long-running government probe was nearing conclusion, but did not give specific information on penalties or exact timeline.
The Bloomberg report said an announcement on the resolution could come as soon as the end of this month.
