Coinbase calls Binance capable of paying fine without selling assets

Coinbase director: Binance will not have to sell crypto assets to pay the fine

The company has $6.35 billion on its balance sheet, of which $3.19 billion are stablecoins

Managing Director of the American cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase Conor Grogan expressed confidence that Binance will be able to pay a fine of $4.3 billion without resorting to the sale of its own crypto-assets.

According to cryptocurrency exchange Binance's Proof of Reserves report, the company holds $6.35 billion in assets, of which $3.19 billion are stackablecoins. Moreover, Grogan wrote on his social media account X, that the exchange may have assets not included in the report, such as in cash or third-party wallets.

Proof of Reserves is a report accepted in the cryptocurrency industry about the balance of an exchange's assets. In this report, the company provides evidence that it has funds that cover all user assets on a 1:1 ratio, plus additional reserves.

According to Binance, when a user credits the exchange with one bitcoin, Binance buys one bitcoin and holds it so that the customer's assets are fully secured. Its corporate assets, however, are not included in these reserves and are accounted for separately.

Three criminal charges were filed against Binance tonight, including conducting an unlicensed financial business, conspiracy, and violating the Emergency Financial Powers Act. The text of the charges spans 30 pages, among them a lack of measures to counter terrorist financing and drug trafficking, as well as violations of US sanctions, including serving customers from Crimea, DNR, and LNR.

As part of a deal to settle the US authorities' charges against Binance, the exchange is required to pay a fine of 4.3 billion and its founder Changpeng Zhao must resign as head of the company. Zhao also pleaded guilty to violating the Bank Secrecy Act and will personally pay a $50 million fine.

Richard Teng, who was previously in charge of all regional markets outside the US, has been appointed as the new head of Binance.