Binance founder Changpeng Zhao gets 4-month sentence; becomes world's richest prisoner

The creator of the cryptocurrency company Binance, Changpeng Zhao, was given a four-month prison sentence on Tuesday, making him the richest prisoner in the world, according to the Telegraph. Following his guilty plea to violations of US anti-money laundering and sanctions laws last year, Mr Zhao was sentenced by a Seattle court. Despite the prosecution's request for a three-year sentence, a US judge sentenced Mr Zhao to four months, noting the "positive nature" of his past behaviours, NDTV reported.

Because of his ownership of Binance, Mr. Zhao has a net worth of approximately $33 billion, making him one of the wealthiest prisoners ever as a result of his prison sentence, according to the outlet. As part of an agreement with US authorities, the 47-year-old had resigned from his position as CEO of Binance the previous year. He still has a 90% stake in Binance.

As per AFP, Binance consented to pay $4.3 billion in February to settle charges after Changpeng Zhao entered a guilty plea for breaking US anti-money laundering laws. According to a court document, prosecutors had requested that the judge sentence the defendant to three years in prison for a crime for which probation is usually the typical punishment.

However, Mr Zhao's lawyers responded arguing that probation is a just, appropriate, and in-line punishment that follows established legal guidelines. Along with what they described as Mr Zhao's philanthropic track record, they also highlighted his acceptance of responsibility.

Binance was founded in 2017 and quickly gained market share in the cryptocurrency trading space, making its CEO and founder Changpeng Zhao a billionaire. Although Binance operates cryptocurrency exchanges and offers a range of other services globally, the company suffered greatly when the cryptocurrency markets crashed and authorities started looking into the legality of its operations.

Notably, Mr Zhao's punishment was handed down weeks after the CEO of the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried, was found guilty of a multibillion-dollar fraud and given a 25-year prison term. He was found to have syphoned billions of dollars from customers for risky investments, and as a result, he was convicted of fraud.