Binance Labs, the investment arm of the Binance exchange, announced an investment in Zest Protocol, an on-chain Bitcoin lending project. After users send BTC to their accounts on Zest, they can choose between a return or a loan option, with their assets converted to sBTC.
Cryptocurrency funds managed to close last week positive after a long time. While the funds saw inflows for the first time in 5 weeks, the figure was net $130 million. Bitcoin funds received a net investment of $144 million, while Ether funds, which have been positive in recent weeks, saw an outflow of $14.4 million this time. There was also strong investment in Solana funds.
As the news of the Wall Street Journal from the US media left its mark on the crypto world today, Binance responded to the allegations. Yi He, one of the founders of the exchange, said, “There is competition among MMs, and the means are very shady. You can buy PR as you like, but don’t get close to me…”
Binance, which was found guilty in a lawsuit filed by the US Department of Justice in recent months and paid a historic fine of $4.3 billion, allegedly fired its manager/employee who uncovered a manipulation by DWF Labs. It is stated that DWF Labs earned $300 million through manipulation. DWF Labs denied the allegations.
Tensions between the Nigerian government and Binance have led to the arrest of two of the exchange’s executives, Tigran Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla, and the escape of one of them. Gambaryan, a Binance executive who is currently detained in a prison in the country, is said to have received a payment request from Gambaryan, which Gambaryan took as a bribe offer, and after informing Binance management, he was arrested along with the other executive.
Changpeng Zhao, the former CEO of Binance, emphasized that the crypto industry has entered a new phase in his statement following his 4-month prison sentence.
Changpeng Zhao, who was sued for failing to adequately comply with anti-money laundering rules and was ordered to quit as Binance CEO, will be sentenced tomorrow. Last week, prosecutors argued that a 36-month prison sentence would be more appropriate for CZ instead of 18 months and made a request to the court.
On Binance’s own token, BNB, 1,944,452 tokens were removed from circulation through an automated burn program. The total value of the burned tokens was $1.17 billion.
In the lawsuit filed by the US Department of Justice against Binance and its founder Changpeng Zhao last year, in which more than $4.3 billion in fines were paid in the first place, a 36-month sentence has now been requested for CZ.
Binance announced Renzo (EZ) as a new Launchpool project. For Renzo, a liquid restaking project, BNB and FDUSD locking will launch tomorrow.