Binance Bolsters Legal Division, Hires New Deputy General Counsel

Binance looks to build a reputable and solid legal division to support its ongoing work and protect users from illicit activity.

Legal Expertise Acquired

Global cryptocurrency exchange Binance is beefing up its legal team after appointing Joshua Eaton to the role of Deputy General Counsel. 

Announced via the Binance Blog on May 11, Eaton is tasked with leading the organization’s legal affairs and will be supporting global compliance, investigations, and law enforcement coordination activities. When you are among the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world, navigating regulations, illegal user activity, and global sanctions, among many other things, can be a minefield. That is why having key legal representation is so important. 

“The legal team at Binance is further strengthened by the dynamism and experience that Josh brings to our continuous efforts to protect users and manage risks,” said Hong Ng, General Counsel, Binance. “Josh was instrumental in his leadership role while in Government, developing its standard-bearing ethics and compliance practices, guiding it through some of the most sensitive and complex issues facing any government organization, and supporting its growth into one of the preeminent federal prosecutors offices in the United States.”

A former Deputy U.S. Attorney in the Northern District of California, Eaton possesses over 20 years of experience representing the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) and also has experience working with the U.S. Army. Eaton’s experience and expertise include working on files related to sensitive operations, investigations, litigation, policies, and programs spanning across U.S. federal and international law enforcement. 

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Crypto Task Force

The Northern California U.S. Attorney’s Office, in partnership with IRS-Criminal Investigations, has quickly become the country’s top investigations and prosecutions team targeting illicit groups who exploit blockchain and crypto technology. Eaton’s work has supported the growth of this group, some of whom have already joined the Binance ranks. Tigran Gambaryan and Matthew Price have already made the jump from public service to the crypto world joining the Binance ranks. 

Binance finds itself in the middle of global expansion efforts into the Middle East and North African region, South America, and recently established operations in France. Binance, and more specifically its CEO CZ, were under scrutiny for not taking more action against Russian users of the platform based on global sanctions. 

While busy, Binance was also recently on the winning side of a lawsuit after a federal judge dismissed claims by plaintiffs that the exchange failed to register as an exchange or broker-dealer and sold unregistered tokens. All of this is to say that as blockchain technology grows on a macro scale, scrutiny in the space gets stronger. Even the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has made efforts to bolster its crypto-focused enforcement unit. It, therefore, makes sense that exchanges like Binance must take steps to ensure they have no blindspots.

“During my time at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, I became interested in blockchain technology and crypto and discovered how important it is to prevent bad actors from abusing this important, legitimate emerging technology for corrupt gain,” said Eaton. “I decided to join Binance because of its commitment to this mission as well as its track record in collaboration with law enforcement driven by transparency, integrity and protecting users.”

Source : bsc.news