Changpeng Zhao, the founder of cryptocurrency firm, Binance, was sentenced to four months in a US prison on Tuesday after pleading guilty to money laundering charges.
The Canadian had stepped down from his post at the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange platform last year as part of a deal with US authorities.
Investigations revealed that terrorist organisations, including the Islamic State and the armed wing of Hamas where able to carry out transactions on the platform
Zhao pleaded guilty to violating US anti-money laundering laws and was fined $50 million. The company itself was fined $4.3 billion to settle charges.
Prosecutors sought a three-year sentence but the judge took cognizance of the fact that he had co-operated with law enforcement in sentencing him. The defendant’s lawyers had argued that being punished with probation is just, appropriate, and in line with legal precedent.
They cited Zhao’s acceptance of responsibility along with what they called his philanthrophy.
Binance was established in 2017 and has taken a huge chunk of the crypto-trading market, turning its founder and chief executive, Zhao, into a billionaire.