In a move to fight the SEC lawsuit, BinanceUS has added former SEC director George Canellos along with three other lawyers to its legal team. George Canellos was the former co-director of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s enforcement division and the other four lawyers are from Milbank LLP.
On June 5, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed a lawsuit against Binance, BinanceUS, and its CEO and founder Changpeng Zhao for violating U.S. securities laws. The lawsuit stated that the company blatantly disregarded U.S. securities laws and also mishandled customers’ funds as well as misleading regulators and investors.
Following the lawsuit, the Commission further filed a TRO (temporary restraining order) to freeze BinanceUS assets to protect customer funds. However, the crypto firm has since denied the allegations.
Canellos currently works as the global head of the litigation and arbitration group at Milbank. In his accolades, he has previously supervised about 1,300 attorneys at the Securities and Exchange Commission on various investigations.
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The investigations included Raj Rajaratnam’s insider trading lawsuit and hedge fund managers associated with S.A.C. Capital. John Reed Stark, the former head of SEC’s Office of Internet Enforcement took to his Twitter page to commend and praise Binance for the move.
According to his tweet, Binance has added a very qualified “all-star lawyer” George Canellos to its legal team, adding that he possesses a “rare and remarkable” skillset.
“Binance and CZ just added a uniquely qualified criminal defense all-star lawyer to their legal team: George Canellos, former Chief of the Major Crimes Unit in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and former head of the SEC’s New York Office and former SEC Enforcement Division Co-Director,” “Canellos possesses a rare and remarkably special combination of skillsets — having served as both an SEC prosecutor and a DOJ prosecutor. Think Liam Neeson meets Perry Mason,” he said.
He further referred to the case against Binance as a “perilous legal quagmire” and added that not even a host of superheroes could save the company from this.
Binance/DOJ Newsflash:
Binance and CZ just added a uniquely qualified criminal defense all-star lawyer to their legal team: George Canellos, former Chief of the Major Crimes Unit in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York and former head of the SEC's New… pic.twitter.com/lQlkZ6oxYc
— John Reed Stark (@JohnReedStark) June 12, 2023
Meanwhile, Binance released a statement on June 9 stating that its banking partners have shown intentions to pause dollars-supported channels on the platform. Consequently, Binance said that it will stop all USD fiat channels including deposits and withdrawals. The situation between the regulatory body and Binance continues to unfold as the global crypto industry pays close attention to see the outcome.
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Victor Swaezy
Victor Swaezy is a crypto-journalist with more than 3 years of experience in covering blockchain technology and digital currencies news. Known for his comprehensive reporting, Victor has contributed to leading industry publications, providing market participants with the required knowledge to make informed decisions. When he is not working, he loves to watch movies and have a good time.