Binance has named Greg Monahan, a former U.S. government criminal investigator, to steer global concealment reporting at the cryptocurrency firm.
Monahan are going to be based in Washington and be liable for an existing team, consistent with the world’s biggest crypto exchange. He spent the majority of his career within the U.S. government, leading cybercrime investigations at the interior Revenue Service.
Binance is facing mounting scrutiny in Washington, including a search by the Department of Justice and IRS into potential illicit activities. The crypto industry — which is essentially unregulated — is additionally bracing for brand spanking new rules, like IRS requirements on reporting crypto transactions.
“My efforts are going to be focused on expanding Binance’s international anti-money laundering and investigation programs, also as strengthening the organization’s relations with regulatory and enforcement bodies worldwide,” said Monahan, who worked last at Deloitte Financial Advisory Services LLP, during a statement.
In recent months, Binance has devoted considerable resources to loading abreast of hires with government experience, including former executives from the Financial Action Task Force — a world standard-setting group dedicated to combating concealment — and Max Baucus, a former Democratic Senator.
Such personnel moves are a standard strategy for financial firms targeted by investigations or major enforcement actions from regulators. In some cases, companies are known to rent people straight from the agencies scrutinizing them.
“We are always expanding our capabilities to form Binance and therefore the wider industry a secure place for all participants,” said Binance Chief military officer Changpeng “CZ” Zhao within the statement.
Karen Leong, who has held the highest concealment role at Binance since 2018, will become a director of compliance, the firm said.