Binance.US, the U.S. affiliate of crypto exchange Binance, has laid off part of its staff roughly one week after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed lawsuits against both entities. According to documents seen by journalists, management described the SEC as a politically motivated regulator that forced it to become a crypto-only exchange. As part of this transition, and because of our preparation for a multi-year and very costly litigation process, the Board has asked Management to shrink the size of our teams across the company and reduce our burn rate, read the documents. Unlike every other U.S. crypto company, we have been working to avoid this scenario, but circumstances have now shifted.
Reports from Reuters indicate that about 50 positions were cut, reducing Binance.US’s staff to 487 employees. The SEC had filed a lawsuit against Binance.US, Binance, and founder and CEO Changpeng CZ Zhao for offering unregistered securities to the public. The SEC had also sought a temporary restraining order to freeze assets tied to Binance.US, but a judge on Thursday declined the order, allowing the exchange to continue doing business in the U.S.